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Every company and every industry will be “transformed by the transition to net-zero”, delegates heard at the third and final core day of 2022 Guernsey Sustainable Finance Week, which focused on carbon markets and pricing. Keynote speaker James Close, Head of Climate Change at NatWest Group, said that “every aspect will change,” but it would be for the benefit of the planet. He added that there was integrity for companies in underpinning carbon credits by reducing emissions, rather than purely offsetting the carbon that businesses produce.

The second day of WE ARE GUERNSEY's Sustainable Finance Week explored the theme of the energy transition, what it means for financial market participants and the role of the private sector in the move away from brown industries. If you missed the sessions, here are eight key takeaways from the event for you to consider: Impact of global events Adam Matthews, Chief Responsible Investment Officer of the Church of England Pensions Board, made it clear that current global events have increased the interest in renewables but have made the landscape even more complex to navigate. Ross Keeling of HSBC agreed: “It's not going to be a linear transition, we're going to have a lot of challenges along the way, and some of these will throw us off course.

The opening day of WE ARE GUERNSEY’s Sustainable Finance Week saw the launch of two significant initiatives, highlighting the finance centre’s leading positing in sustainable finance. First, a report published by Guernsey Finance in conjunction with Baringa Partners - Private Finance and its Role in the Transition to Net Zero – sets out a roadmap to net zero for the finance industry. Secondly, The Guernsey Financial Services Commission’s launched the world-first Natural Capital Fund regime.

Pace and scale is the key to the success of the energy transition to net zero, delegates heard at the second core day of Guernsey Sustainable Finance Week. Peter Bachmann, Managing Director of Sustainable Infrastructure at Gresham House, speaking on the first panel session of the afternoon focusing on what the energy transition really means for financial market participants, said that demonstrating success quickly was key to bringing in more mature pools of capital. When asked by panel moderator Josephine Bush, Sustainable Finance Strategic Advisor at Guernsey Finance, about how the world can accelerate to a net-zero future, he said: “The best thing we can do is show our initiatives work.

Two significant launches marked the opening of 2022 Guernsey Sustainable Finance Week on Tuesday. The Guernsey Financial Services Commission, the island’s regulator, announced the official launch of a new product in Guernsey’s sustainable funds regime – the Natural Capital Fund – following consultation over the last few months. The Natural Capital Fund regime creates a regulatory designation for funds to help channel investment into biodiversity and natural capital projects that make a positive contribution and/or significantly reduce harm to the natural world.