Green finance can make economic and financial system more sustainable

Green Finance conference by OeNB, SUERF and WU on 4 May 2018 at the OeNB in Vienna

Natural disasters, poor harvests and other consequences of climate change cause negative social and economic externalities. The mispricing of harmful emissions and ecological risks by financial markets sets the wrong incentives for economic agents; and these wrong incentives challenge the sustainability of our economies. The signatories of the Paris climate accord of 2015 agreed on ambitious objectives, and their achievement will also depend on financial markets doing their share. The contribution by financial markets to making our economic system more sustainable is called green finance.

In close cooperation with the Vienna University of Economics and Business, SUERF – the European Money and Finance Network (www.suerf.org) and the OeNB are organizing a joint conference on “Green finance, regulation and monetary policy” to be held on the premises of the OeNB on May 4, 2018. At the conference, experts will discuss potential financial risks resulting from climate change, investment incentives that are compatible with climate protection, whether we need new regulations, and the role supervisors and central banks can play in this context.

Recognizing their special responsibility, several central banks have established the Network for Greening the Financial System (NGFS) to analyze macrofinancial and regulatory instruments that may be useful for achieving the objectives of the Paris accord. The OeNB, which has become CO2 neutral many years ago, joined the network earlier this year.