The Chartered Banker Institute (CBI) has welcomed an FCA discussion paper that focused on enabling finance to deliver on its potential to drive sustainable change.
The FCA said it recognises the need for genuine capability-building across the financial sector, including staff training on climate change and net zero and sustainability more broadly, identifying the PRB Academy as a good example of a UK and global initiative in this area.
The Academy aims to support banks’ alignment with the objectives of the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement and was founded through a partnership between the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI), The Chartered Banker Institute, and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ).
CBI said, “We believe there is a clear link between purpose, culture and education in firms and the just transition (moving to a more sustainable economy that is fair to everyone), so ensuring that finance professionals have the knowledge and skills required to support decision-making and understand the financial and sustainability outcomes these lead to is essential. As is building firms’ capacities, capabilities and cultures to support the fast-growing and constantly evolving ESG sector.”
Chartered Banker Institute CEO Simon Thompson said, “I am very encouraged to see two key initiatives that the Institute is playing a key role in, the PRB Academy and the Green Finance Education Charter is highlighted by the FCA in their latest Discussion Paper.
“In my article, I feature the growing problem of competence greenwashing, which is as serious a threat to the integrity and future growth of ESG as greenwashing itself. I believe there is an opportunity to address this through regulatory levers both in the UK and internationally, however, by ensuring that firms are no longer allowed to ‘mark their own homework’ by certifying the ESG competence of their staff themselves.
“Collectively the UK’s professional bodies have the appetite, expertise, and resources to support this endeavour and I encourage all our members and their employers to read and engage with the DP”
The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has revealed that ESG investing will be a key focus in its Division of Examinations in 2023.
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