It was established to address the needs of SMEs in adapting to the requirements of the upcoming Climate Change Law

The Financial Centre for Sustainability in Spain (Finresp) has joined the International Network of Financial Centres for Sustainability (FC4S), promoted by the United Nations Environment Programme, which aims to ensure that sufficient private capital is allocated to green and climate-friendly investments.

Finresp, created in 2019 by the main financial sector associations—AEB, CECA, Inverco, Unacc, and Unespa—thus becomes the twenty-seventh member of the United Nations international network, whose objective is to exchange experiences and undertake common actions to accelerate the expansion of green and sustainable finance.

Based in Madrid, this center was established with the aim of specifically addressing the difficulties and needs of the business fabric and small and medium-sized enterprises in adapting to the requirements of the upcoming Climate Change Law and to the regulatory proposals on sustainable finance recently presented by the European Commission.

For the President of the Spanish Banking Association, José María Roldán, “with this adhesion to the International Network of Financial Centres for Sustainability, our center joins the burgeoning international movement of sustainable finance undertaken by major global corporations in compliance with the Paris Agreement. We want to learn from experiences developed in other countries and even launch joint initiatives that can help our companies adapt to the Climate Change Law and thus become increasingly respectful of the environment and the concept of a fairer and more sustainable economy.”

José María Méndez, General Director of CECA, also stated that “this action demonstrates the commitment of Spanish retail banking and Finresp to promoting responsible banking. Our main purpose is to carry out joint actions to accelerate the expansion of a green economy and a culture with environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) criteria among SMEs in our country.”

For the President of Inverco, Ángel Martínez-Aldama, “Finresp’s adhesion to the International Network of Financial Centres for Sustainability underscores the commitment of the asset management industry and the entire financial community to sustainable finance, which already represents one of the main driving forces in channeling investment flows towards a sustainable future.”

Pilar González de Frutos, President of Unespa, considers that Finresp’s recent step to join FC4S is “an excellent opportunity for the insurance business to contribute to addressing environmental, social, and governance risks and opportunities.”

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La entrada Finresp joins the UN’s network of financial centers for sustainability se publicó primero en Asociación Española de Banca.

This initiative is part of the United Nations project to create Financial Centres for Sustainability (FC4S) that act as an international network to support and promote green and sustainable finance. These centres provide an appropriate framework for financial institutions and other interested groups to discuss and foster innovative products and services with the common hallmark of sustainability. Under the umbrella of this United Nations project, nine Financial Centres for Sustainability have already been created in the European Union.

In Spain, the Centre for Responsible and Sustainable Finance (Finresp) was established with the aim of addressing, in particular, the difficulties and needs that the business fabric faces, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises in our country, in adapting to the requirements of the forthcoming Climate Change Act and the regulatory proposals on sustainable finance recently presented by the European Commission. With this objective, Finresp aims to promote innovative financing and investment solutions to facilitate this adaptation process for Spanish SMEs, thus incorporating them into the thriving sustainable finance movement that major global corporations have undertaken following the mandate of the Paris Agreement.

As will be recalled, the Paris Agreement, signed in 2015 by more than one hundred countries, established three specific actions on climate change: to keep the increase in global average temperature well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels; to increase the capacity to adapt to the adverse effects of climate change; and to raise financial flows to a level consistent with climate-resilient economic development. This last objective gives an indication of the importance that the promoters of the Paris Agreement have placed on financing this process. In Europe alone, the European Commission estimates that meeting these objectives will require additional annual investment of €177 billion between 2021 and 2030.

The founders of Finresp in Spain are also aware of the crucial role that the financial sector plays in transforming the economy toward more sustainable parameters, an issue they wish to share and promote in Spanish society. To this end, under the direction of the council formed by its founders, it seeks to become the appropriate forum where all interested parties—companies, financial institutions, climate change experts and other public and private market agents—can find innovative financial and investment solutions for businesses and share best practices. Likewise, the Centre in Spain

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La entrada AEB, CECA, INVERCO, UNACC and UNESPA Create the Financial Centre for Sustainability in Spain se publicó primero en Asociación Española de Banca.