London and Leeds set to become global centres for green finance

London and Leeds will be home to a new UK centre for driving global green finance and investment, Energy Minister Anne-Marie Trevelyan announced today (15 February).

Thanks to £10m worth of government investment, the two new physical hubs will provide global financial institutions with information and data to support their business decisions while also considering the impacts on climate change.

The Centres for Greening Finance and Investment, which are due to open in April 2021, will be led by researchers from a number of UK institutions including the University of Oxford, the University of Leeds and Imperial College London.

The hubs will equip banks with the latest environmental and scientific intelligence to help companies of all sizes to anticipate and adapt to the risks posed by climate change.

The hubs will also help to create new products and services that tackle climate change, such as technologies that measure severe storms and flood risks for property investors and tools that can improve data on industrial pollution linked to investment portfolios.

The researchers will also help to divert investment away from unsustainable activities such as deforestation and fossil fuels, and instead towards low carbon sectors such as creating green jobs and building industries of the future.

Energy and clean growth minister Anne-Marie Trevelyan said: ‘Climate change is the biggest issue that we need to tackle to protect our planet for our children and grandchildren. While the government has invested billions of pounds so we can end the UK’s contribution to climate change, we will not reach our net zero target without mobilising private capital and unleashing the power of the free market.

‘The UK Centre for Greening Finance and Investment in London and Leeds will encourage financial services to turn the tide of their investments and focus on sectors and companies that have a smaller environmental footprint. Doing so will support industries and businesses to develop clean green innovations, creating thousands of jobs across the country – ensuring we build back greener.’