La sélection de Responsible Investing SELECTION FROM “L’OPINION” NO. 17 - SUPPLEMENT FROM “L’OPINION” NO. 1105 OF 4 OCTOBER 2017 - MAY NOT BE SOLD SEPARATELY The 2015 Paris climate agreement has accelerated the development of sustainable finance. Bankers, businesses, fund managers: everyone is involved. Green finance, the driving force for a new sustainable world ONU The United Nations’ seventeen Sustainable Development Goals aim to eradicate poverty by 2030. urope is rallying, and furthermore, greater transparen- Environment that’s how important cy of financial institutions and busi- How can we build a bridge between the matter is! This nesses on the way they take sustaina- asset managers concerned with summer, a group of bility into account in their decisions... “Doing more and better with less” responsible investments and busi- experts from the Eu- A huge programme. has become the new mantra of the nesses working to comply with ropean Commission With sustainable finance, Brus- ESG (environmental, social and in Brussels submitted sels clearly wants to move on from the European Commission, which adopted governance) criteria ? Sustainable its first report on sustainable finance. post-subprime crisis years. “The first a package of measures to this effect finance addresses this concern” EThe goal after six months of work: to wave of European Union reforms was Sustainable finance is the answer. identify ways to enshrine this concept, based on the stability and resilience of It brings together SRI (socially which is still somewhat vague, in Euro- the financial system”, comments the responsible investment), soli- pean law. The commission made about European executive. “The Commis- transform our world”. Between the new mantra of the Commission, which darity financing, green finance fifteen recommendations, including sion now intends to redirect the finan- fight against global warming and the adopted a package of measures to this and, more generally, responsible taking into account considerations cial system so that it can support long- UN’s 17 goals to eradicate poverty and effect almost two years ago. investing. Trillions of dollars are related to sustainable development in term sustainable growth”. combat inequalities, there is no shor- The circular economy means at stake. ratings, the creation of a “sustainabi- The subject has been top of mind tage of good causes. Europe itself has rethinking production and consump- lity criterion” for EU financial legisla- since the Paris climate agreement set ambitious goals for 2030 in terms tion patterns to optimise the use of Muriel Motte tion, the establishment of a standard was signed in 2015 and the adoption of the circular economy. “Doing more natural resources and limit the waste and a European label for green bonds, of the United Nations programme “to and better with less” has become the lll Page II The BNP Paribas Sustainable Future Forum, a key responsible investment event he 2017 Week of Responsible This Wednesday BNP Paribas is for climate change, Clara Gaymard, Finance (Semaine de la Finance holding the second BNP Paribas Sustai- co-founder of the Raise endow- TResponsable) ends this Thurs- nable Future Forum in Paris. The goal: ment fund, and Bjorn Otto Sverdup, day. Since 2010, it has become the main bring together business customers and head of corporate sustainability at event for promoting initiatives all over institutional investors “to enable them the oil giant Statoil, will share their France in favour of sustainable develop- to share and discuss their needs vision of the world of tomorrow and ment in all its forms – crowdfunding to and their goals in terms of sustai- draw up a list of the challenges ahead. make a social impact, solidarity finan- nable finance”, according to Yann Gé- Some 250 fund managers and busi- cing and socially responsible invest- rardin, Head of Corporate and Institu- nesses are expected to attend. ment (SRI). The event has been particu- tional Banking at BNP Paribas. BNP Paribas inaugurated larly important since the Paris climate Participants, which will include the concept of its sustainable fo- agreement was signed in 2015. France Bertrand Piccard, the founder rum last year in Singapore. The SIPA PRESS wants to be a world leader in this field, of Solar Impulse, Sir David King, city will again play host to the upco- and it is also one of the priorities of Em- former adviser to the UK govern- ming sustainable future forum on The Paris climate agreement has played a key role in raising manuel Macron’s five-year term. ment and special representative 26 October. awareness of the ecological emergency. 4 october 2017 l’Opinion I Responsible Investing lll Continued from page I market indices, and the issuance of green generated. Whether it concerns fertilisers bonds on behalf of industrial groups, the bank manufactured from secondary raw materials, is working on an extended offering of green “In the US, green combating food waste, recycling of municipal products, especially on the credit market. waste, innovation in the fields of water and Large financial institutions are themselves energy, or the “repairability” of consumer finance is now moving products, Brussels is in the process of map- ping out the route for the next fifteen years. Not forgetting the crux of the matter, money. “The projects that into traditional finance” The European “package” has also provided for the creation of a platform for supporting currently drive the the financing of the circular economy “which vision of sustainable calities in favour of maintaining the commit- brings together innovators and investors”. ments of COP21. The issuance of a green bond Bringing stakeholders together, with finance are laying by Mid American Energy, subsidiary of Warren equity providers on the one side, businesses Buffet’s group, the benchmark of American on the other, is also the business of banks. the foundations capitalism, is highly symbolic. This bond is a BNP Paribas has made it a priority goal across to ensure that the signal that green finance is moving into tradi- all issues of sustainability. “We are heading to- tional finance. wards more disintermediation: the customers financial system that we are financing today with the bank’s also becomes social, Does the engagement of public figures balance sheet will be financing themselves influence behaviour ? tomorrow on the markets, says Yann Gérar- promotes solidarity Recently, the shareholder pension funds of din, Head of BNP Paribas’ corporate and ins- and ethical, Exxon Mobil and Occidental Petroleum pushed titutional banking (CIB) entity. The purpose through a resolution at the general meeting, of CIB is to ensure fluidity. For example, we meaning viable against the will of the board of directors, obli- recommend our institutional customers that in the long term” ging them to discuss the impact of a +2° sce- they should invest in sustainable products is- nario on their business model. These share- sued by corporates who are looking to finance DR holders were supported in their approach by themselves on the markets and vice versa”. leading fund managers such as BlackRock and Around the globe, key managers are rated against non-financial criteria by fund Hervé Duteil, Managing Vanguard. This is a totally new event, which increasingly rallying around “green” issues. managers. One after the other, they are fine- Director of BNP Paribas, in charge echoes a certain number of recent statements This summer, GPIF, the colossal Japanese tuning their “sustainable” strategy. On 1 Sep- of Social and Environmental by public figures. Thus, Philippe Hilderbrand, pension fund, with €1.275 billion in assets, tember, BNP Paribas set up a new corporate Responsibility & Social Finance Vice- Chairman of BlackRock, has stated introduced three initial ESG indices into the engagement division, directly represented on for the Americas region that investors now have a strong card to play management of a proportion of the total capi- the Executive Committee. Its role: to define against global warming. Mark Carney, Gover- tal. Approximately 3% of its equity portfolio and implement the internal policy “on eco- What does the sustainable nor of the Bank of England, has warned against is now linked to this indices. That does not nomic development, the environment and finance market represent in the US ? the financial risks related to climate change. sound like much but it is only the beginning. energy transition, social inclusion, regional The American financial market is the These voices are beginning to be heard. promotion, diversity and promotion of res- largest in the world, and that of sustainable pect for human rights.” finance offers considerable potential, even What is BNP Paribas’ position The initiative is far-reaching, and for though it is still behind compared with that on the American market ? Large financial good reason. “Prudential standards and of Europe, which has been very active for We support large businesses in their institutions are equity requirements are not the only solu- around a decade. In the US, this segment has energy transition projects, via bank financing tions to ensure finance does not relive the been dynamic for only three or four years. One or in the structuring of green bond issues for themselves rated crises of 2007 and 2008”, stated Revue of the main obstacles is legal. On the investor example. This is the traditional activity of the against non- Banque as early as 2011. “The projects that side, the concept of fiduciary responsibility