JONES DAY TALKS®: Riding the Green Bond Wave: Focus is on Standards as Volumes Surge
Podcast: European Green Finance and Sustainability Proposals – Impact for Asset Managers
On July 4, 2024, the UK general election took place, and the Labour Party won with a significant majority. After 14 years of Conservative Party rule, a number of changes are now expected in respect of the UK's position on...more
We are pleased to share the July 2024 issue of Wilson Sonsini's Sustainability and ESG Advisory Practice Update. Each issue combines news, key legal developments, and resources related to sustainability and environmental,...more
While 2022 showed that the sustainable debt market is not impervious to overall economic slow-down (particularly in the capital markets), 2023 demonstrated its resiliency, even in a high-interest rate market. Notwithstanding...more
The energy transition received a transformative boost when European Union lawmakers approved new voluntary standards for companies that wish to issue "green" bonds. The European Green Bond Standard, which will be finalized on...more
The 28th Conference of the Parties (COP28) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) has commenced this week in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE), and will run through December 12, 2023. The UAE is...more
The Situation: On October 5, 2023, the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union adopted the European Green Bond Regulation ("EuGB Regulation"), establishing a voluntary harmonized standard open to both EU and...more
At a September legal conference convened by the European Central Bank (ECB), Frank Elderson, a member of the ECB’s executive board and vice-chair of its supervisory board, observed the increasing risk of climate lawsuits and...more
The European Green Bond Standard seeks to be the “gold standard” for green bonds and reinforce the EU’s position as the leading market for sustainable finance. With the adoption of the EU green bond standard (the EU GBS),...more
In September 2023, the European Central Bank (ECB) published its second economy-wide stress test, shedding light on the credit risks that European banks may face as a result of the ongoing climate transition....more
In September 2023, pan-European stock exchange and market infrastructure provider Euronext announced the imminent launch of a range of ESG tools and initiatives focused on sustainable finance, including its intention to...more
The EU regulators are reviewing the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation introduced in 2021, exploring the need for potential additional adjustments. On 14 September 2023, the European Commission initiated a...more
Methodology - For this report we used a definition of climate finance aligned with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Standing Committee on Finance, which states: “Climate finance aims at...more
The transition to a low-carbon, resilient, and just economy is the greatest investment opportunity of our lifetime. Institutions that are well prepared to embark on Net Zero pathways will be able to take full advantage of...more
The Green Technical Advisory Group, which is guiding the UK government’s implementation of a UK Green Taxonomy, has issued detailed advice for the upcoming legislation. In September 2023, the Green Technical Advisory Group...more
The EU published a new Sustainable finance package 2023 on June 13, 2023. The package includes - - A Proposed Regulation on the transparency and integrity of ESG rating activities, which aims to enhance the quality of ESG...more
On 13 June 2023, the European Commission published a proposal for a regulation on the transparency and integrity of ESG rating activities, following concerns about the reliability, comparability and transparency of ESG...more
The Council of the European Union and the European Parliament announced, on 28 February 2023, that provisional agreement on the European Green Bond Standard (the EU GBS and the Regulation) had been reached. More recently the...more
As part of the European Central Bank’s (ECB) 2021 action plan to incorporate climate change considerations into its monetary policy, the ECB conducted a climate risk stress test of the Eurosystem balance sheet in 2022. Those...more
The Commission is also consulting on proposed targeted amendments to the Taxonomy Climate Delegated Act and on the Taxonomy Disclosures Delegated Act. On 5 April 2023 the European Commission opened a consultation on its...more
The latest proposals show the direction of travel in the increasingly expanding web of consumer protection regulation on sustainable products and initiatives. Background - The European Green Deal, presented by the...more
The government's updated net-zero Green Finance Strategy was published on 30 March 2023. We set out below the key elements of the updated Strategy which focuses on the need for green investment and on opportunities for the...more
Sustainable finance is the practice of redirecting public and private capital towards investments that support ESG goals and outcomes. The market dynamics of sustainable finance are driven by the need for enormous investments...more
The high production costs of renewable hydrogen (RH2) limit its ability to compete with alternative non-renewable fuels and technologies. This is exacerbated by a number of market failures (including failure of carbon pricing...more
Talks during the third day of COP 27 focused on climate finance. Here’s what business leaders need to know to keep up-to-date on event proceedings...more
The proposed taxonomy for green and transition activities is aligned with increasing global demand for clear and consistent classification of sustainable finance activities. In May 2022, the Green Finance Industry...more