Analysis

• 'The time is right to invest in natural capital'

  12 October 2020

  How does HSBC Pollination Climate Asset Management aim to attract large-scale investment in natural capital, Michael Hurley asks

  

• Hydrogen's explosive potential to green the economy

  09 October 2020

  'Green' hydrogen promises many benefits to help decarbonise our economies, but it may need EU carbon prices to be five times higher by 2030. Ahren Lester reports.

  

• Green bonds begin to flow from emerging market banks

  08 October 2020

  A pioneering initiative by the IFC to encourage green bond issuance by banks in emerging markets is bearing fruit, reports Graham Cooper

  

• Green bond comment, October 2020: Automotive green bonds drive up corporate issuance

  07 October 2020

  Issuance from car makers has shifted to a higher gear in recent months, and it is a sign that corporates more broadly are tapping the market, says Ahren Lester

  

• Green, social and sustainability bond market nearly doubles in third quarter

  05 October 2020

  In a year thrown into disarray by the coronavirus pandemic, Ahren Lester reports on how issuance of green, social and sustainability bonds has continued to power ahead, helped by a broadening range of issuers and more large issues.

  

• Five years on from the UN SDGs, investors cannot afford to ignore impact

  05 October 2020

  The financial industry has a role to play in supporting the actions being taken by companies to meet the Sustainable Development Goals, says Vafa Ahmadi

  

• Can a new Plastic Waste Levy push the EU towards a circular economy?

  29 September 2020

  The EU's plastic waste levy is set to begin in January 2021, despite insufficient recycling infrastructure. The plastic industry must adapt and compete, or decline and retreat, argues Gabriel Thoumi

  

• Defining transition finance: how to be inclusive yet specific

  28 September 2020

  Transition finance has garnered a lot of attention, but the challenge of delineating what exactly it is remains unresolved. Three recent reports try to balance the need for the definition to be both broad enough to be inclusive, yet specific enough to protect the instruments from claims of greenwashing. Ahren Lester reports.

  

• Basic definition essential for transition bond issuance, says ISS ESG

  25 September 2020

  The market does not have to 'reinvent the wheel' on the structure of transition bonds to support future issuers, ISS ESG tells Ahren Lester, but a clear definition of what activities demonstrate 'transition' is essential for this potentially large market to grow

  

• Can impact be the guiding star for corporates?

  21 September 2020

  The Value Balancing Alliance's methodologies for assessing companies' net impact will define the future of corporate decision making, Christian Heller tells Michael Hurley