Sustainable finance policy and regulation is crucial to align financial flows with the global sustainability agenda. Whether driving innovation, or addressing the global challenges arising from the triple planetary crisis of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution, well-crafted policy and regulation can mobilize capital towards sustainable development, promote transparency and disclosure, provide common language and standards, and foster collaboration amongst stakeholders. Without coherent policy, sustainable finance may not be sufficiently prioritized by the financial sector and its counterparties, leading to missed opportunities for investments in sustainability.
To act quickly and in a coordinated fashion, the finance industry increasingly needs harmonized and sound regulation that ensures clarity of direction, facilitates a just transition in key economic sectors, supports the realization of voluntary commitments, and helps prevent reputational risks and greenwashing.
UNEP FI is guiding its members in navigating the complex and ever-changing policy environment of today. We engage our membership on current sustainable finance policy and regulation topics, provide policy analysis and support and update our membership continuously on the regulatory landscape. Through that we establish a centre for knowledge and dialogue between financial institutions and the public sector that facilitates implementation of current and future regulatory compliance and voluntary commitments, relevant for UNEP FI’s initiatives and its members.
Our global approach focuses on facilitating compatibility between policy and regulatory frameworks across the world. To do so, we are part of several multilateral collaboration platforms, including the G20 Sustainable Finance Working Group, the EU Platform on Sustainable Finance and the International Platform on Sustainable Finance Stakeholder of the Network for Greening the Financial System.
