The Insitute was announced by Chancellor Philip Hammond on Thursday (21 June) as part of his vision for the future of the UK’s financial services sector.
Hammond said that the body would help develop the UK’s green finance market and help to mobilise the investment required to reach the country’s climate targets.
He said: “The UK is already leading the charge in this market – with nearly 80 green bonds raising more than $24 billion across seven currencies. But if we are collectively to meet our global climate goals, we will need to mobilise $90 trillion by 2030. And it is my ambition that the UK leads the world in financing this investment.”
‘Good for business, good for the world’
The City of London Corporation’s policy chairman Catherine McGuinness said the Institute would ensure the capital remains a “world leader” in green finance in years to come.
“This will bring together the UK’s existing capabilities, create new business opportunities, and communicate to the wider market what London’s offer is in green finance and insurance,” McGuinness said.
“Promoting this is not only good for business, but is good for the world; helping tackle one of our greatest challenges – global warming.
The launch of an Institute to develop the UK’s green finance market was a key recommendation from the Government’s green advisers in March.
The Green Finance Taskforce has also called for a relaunch of the UK’s green finance activities through a new unified brand, and the integration of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) recommendations through the UK’s corporate governance and reporting framework.
In related news, the owner of the Green Investment Group, Macquarie, has announced it will offer £500m of green financing to renewable energy, energy efficiency and other environmentally-friendly projects, as part of a new £2bn loan facility.
George Ogleby