Sustainability

Second Sustainable Finance Week Convened by Bloomberg to Accelerate the Next $10 Trillion of Sustainable Investment

November 21, 2019

Mainstreaming of sustainable finance at the heart of discussions at four major events across New York and Toronto; Nuveen, BMO, RI, SASB and Natixis Investment Managers are main partners for the week

New York, November 21, 2019 – The second annual Sustainable Finance Week convened by Bloomberg will expand beyond events in New York to Toronto this year. Taking place during the first week of December, Sustainable Finance Week (SFW) conversations in both cities will focus on how we accelerate the mobilization of the next $10 trillion in sustainable investment. With over $30 trillion of assets managed sustainably, sustainable finance is no longer a niche investment strategy, and is becoming increasingly mainstream. Four major events throughout the week – supplemented by additional related events – will bring together more than 1,500 thought leaders and decision-makers from the worlds of finance, business and policy.

SFW is made possible through collaboration with our presenting sponsors Nuveen and BMO, core conveners Responsible Investor and the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) and supporting sponsor Natixis.

The four core convener events taking place during Sustainable Finance Week this year are:

Sustainable finance has seen 500% growth over the last ten years with currently $30.7 trillion of AUM globally. At this rate of growth, $40 trillion will be in-market by 2020. However, a lack of common metrics, misconceptions about sustainable finance including skepticism regarding financial returns remain key barriers to broader adoption. Discussions at SFW will bring forward ideas on how to overcome these barriers and will touch on a broad spectrum of issues related to environmental, social and governance (ESG) considerations.

“Bloomberg is committed to helping mobilize capital and make sustainable finance the new normal for capital markets. At the same time we’re supporting market infrastructure efforts such as the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) and the Climate Finance Leadership Initiative (CFLI),” commented Lee Ballin, Head of Business Development for Sustainability at BloombergNEF (BNEF). “Sustainable Finance Week is a unique platform that gives investors and influencers the chance to be at the forefront of seeking out opportunities and setting the agenda for sustainable finance in the decade to come.”

“Responsible investing presents a tremendous opportunity to solve some of the world’s most pressing challenges, while also generating competitive financial returns,” said Vijay Advani, Chief Executive Officer of Nuveen, a TIAA company. “The rapid growth of Sustainable Finance Week shows how the approach has gone mainstream as increasingly more institutions, advisors and individuals recognize the long-term value associated with investing in people and planet.”

“As the world grapples with addressing climate change, banks are uniquely positioned to be catalysts for change that meets environmental, social, and economic needs,” said Dan Barclay, Chief Executive Officer and Group Head, BMO Capital Markets. “We must work with industry – both traditional and emerging – to support a transition to a sustainable future while preserving economic growth and stability.”

“Responsible Investor is delighted that the RI New York 2019 conference is a cornerstone of Sustainable Finance Week. We’re expecting 600+ senior investment professionals to discuss the latest regulatory and financial developments on ESG and sustainable finance,” stated Hugh Wheelan, Co-founder and Managing Director at Responsible Investor.

“Collaboration will be essential to mobilize the next $10 trillion for sustainable investment and achieve the goal of Sustainable Finance Week. And collaboration is at the heart of the SASB Symposium, where we bring together companies, investors, and everyone in between, to move the market towards more standardized market infrastructure for ESG information. We are excited to partner with Sustainable Finance Week to accelerate the growth of this field,” commented Nicolai Lundy, Director of Education & Partnerships at SASB.

“Asset managers are positioned to help catalyze change in the global economy, so we are pleased to join with Bloomberg to convene a wide range of leading experts to advance the dialog on sustainable finance,” said Jean Raby, CEO of Natixis Investment Managers. “ESG investing has gone from a niche to a mega-trend in just a few years as investors increasingly expect their portfolios to reflect their values. To channel that energy into long-term multilateral solutions, investors must work together to ensure that ESG investing is a means to an end and not an end itself, and forums like these help to facilitate that dialog.”

Follow and join the conversations on Twitter at #sustainablefinanceweek.

Press Contact
Veronika Henze
Bloomberg
+1-646-324-1596
vhenze@bloomberg.net

About Bloomberg
Bloomberg, the global business and financial information and news leader, gives influential decision makers a critical edge by connecting them to a dynamic network of information, people and ideas. The company’s strength – delivering data, news and analytics through innovative technology, quickly and accurately – is at the core of the Bloomberg Terminal. Bloomberg’s enterprise solutions build on the company’s core strength: leveraging technology to allow customers to access, integrate, distribute and manage data and information across organizations more efficiently and effectively. For more information, visit Bloomberg.com/company or request a demo.

To find out more about Bloomberg’s sustainable finance offerings visit bloomberg.com/esg. For information about the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) and the Climate Finance Leadership Initiative (CFLI) visit  fsb-tcfd.org and bloomberg.com/cfli respectively.

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