Recent developments show how innovative sustainable finance instruments can help the transition to greener financial markets.
By Paul A. Davies and Edward R. Kempson
The EU Taxonomy Regulation[1] (the Regulation), which entered into force in July 2020, is one of the most significant developments in sustainable finance. The Regulation creates a classification system for green and sustainable economic activities (the Taxonomy) that is intended to be used by market participants in the EU and beyond to navigate the transition to a low-carbon, resilient, and resource-efficient economy. Under the Taxonomy, in order for an economic activity to be classified as “green”, it must (i) substantially contribute to one of six environmental objectives,[2] (ii) do no significant harm to the other five objectives, (iii) comply with certain governance safeguards,[3] and (iv) comply with specific science-based performance thresholds (or “technical screening criteria”).