Ministers urged for biodiversity regulation
September 30, 2022
The CEOs of three financial institutions have written to global finance ministers with a plea for support for biodiversity and nature-related risk regulatory frameworks.
The letter to the Finance Ministers Coalition for Climate Action, sent on behalf of the Finance for Biodiversity Foundation and the connected Finance for Biodiversity Pledge, was penned by The CEOs of Aviva, Domini Impact Investments and Storebrand Asset Management, and asked for greater regulatory direction from policymakers through the Global Biodiversity Framework.
The letter states: “The economic transformation required to protect biodiversity and safeguard the natural systems that our economies and financial systems depend upon to function cannot be left to the voluntary actions of relatively few private actors.
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“In order to achieve this, we call on you to support the alignment of public and private financial flows with the goals and targets of the GBF as a key policy aim, globally and locally.”
The letter urges ministers to send a strong signal to governments ahead of the biodiversity-centric COP15 conference that aligning financial flows is critical.
“It should be about both financing green and greening finance, meaning that positive financial flows are increased and financial flows that harm biodiversity are reduced,” it added.
The letter encouraged finance ministers to set disclosure regulations, requiring that all financial institutions assess their impacts and dependencies on nature, using global standards such as upcoming Taskforce Nature Related Disclosures (TNFD)
It also called for financial institutions to be obliged to publish plans as to how they will reduce their negative impact on the biosphere and increase their positive impact.
The letter also stated that integrating nature-related risks next to climate-related risks into regulatory frameworks for financial institutions should also be prioritised.
Central banks should follow the example of the Dutch central bank, which has quantitatively mapped the physical and transition risks of domestic biodiversity loss, the letter said.
“We urge you to send a strong signal within your government before COP15 that aligning financial flows is critical. It should be about both financing green and greening finance, meaning that positive financial flows are increased and financial flows that harm biodiversity are reduced,” the letter read.
The Finance for Biodiversity Foundation represents 103 financial institutions across 19 countries and collectively holds €14 trillion in assets.
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