Date: 20th December 2024
Author:

Executive Summary

The global financial landscape is increasingly focusing on transition investing, a strategic approach to channelling capital towards aspiring sustainable economic activities. This paper provides an overview of the current state, challenges, and opportunities in transition investing, with a particular emphasis on European markets and retail investor perspectives.

BETTER FINANCE also assesses transition finance from the lens of financial institutions and industries, whereby a large disparity between investments in green, sustainable and transition tools can be observed.

Some of the key findings in this paper include:

Market growth and potential in 2024

  • EU climate benchmark funds grown by €135 billion
  • Taxonomy-aligned CapEx increased by €58 billion
  • EU accounts for 84% of global sustainable fund assets

Investor awareness and challenges

  • While most investors are familiar with transition investing, approximately one-third remain unaware of the concept
  • Lack of commonly accepted transition definitions
  • Insufficient regulatory requirements
  • Risks of "transition-washing"
  • Inconsistent reporting by financial institutions

Recommendations from retail Investors

  • Improve communication and clarity about transition investing
  • Develop a unified engagement mechanism
  • Introduce a dedicated transition category for financial products
  • Harmonize existing legislation to increase transparency and trust

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