Past SSF Events 2024
SSF Annual Conference and 10-Year Anniversary: The Next 10 Years
Around 300 people joined us in Bern for the SSF Annual Conference 2024 and 10-Year Anniversary. Sabine Döbeli (CEO, SSF) opened the conference with a brief welcome note, followed by a keynote from Mary Robinson (former President of Ireland, Chair of The Elders & former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights) about the need for a just transition to a low-carbon world. She highlighted why climate change is unjust and what role various actors could have in contributing towards climate change mitigation in a manner that is equitable. Particularly her keynote stressed the urgency for a transition to a low-carbon world that includes everyone and emphasized the role that local and global communities can play in this pursuing this goal.
The second session was a panel discussion focusing on combining private and public wealth to enable change. Ambassador Christian Frutiger (Deputy Director, SDC), Peter Wuffli (Founder and Chairman of Elea Foundation for Ethics in Globalization) and Mary Robinson discussed among other topics, why banks should care about the transition and not just focus on business as usual, the instruments Switzerland uses to promote private sector investments in developing countries, the crucial role of pension funds in the transition and how increasing investments with a direct impact is a core part of what will allow us to achieve the transition, and how regulation affects the flow of private capital towards sustainable solutions. This panel was moderated by Patrick Odier (President, SSF).
After the networking break, Alisée de Tonnac (Co-founder and Co-CEO of Seedstars) highlighted the role of start-ups in Sustainable Finance and Impact Finance. With Seedstars promoting technology and entrepreneurship in emerging markets, she emphasized how quality jobs to access basic rights as elaborated by the SDGs are still scarce in emerging countries. Additionally, a small share of companies creates most of the new jobs. Seedstars focuses on fostering opportunities through targeting companies with potential growth and niche ventures that are innovative and disruptive with a medium to large market- and scale potential. Furthermore, Seedstars targets sectors that have the potential to leverage technology and impact a high number of people. Alisée then showcased different examples of ventures that have become major impact makers in emerging countries with the help of Seedstars.
The following interactive session on key developments in Sustainable Finance was split into panels. First, Daniel Belfer (CEO, J. Safra Sarasin) and Reto Ringger (Founder and CEO, Globalance) discussed the role of private wealth in addressing change. An important lever are the clients and to what extent they can be influenced by banks. They differ from region to region and their sustainability interest is to some extent dependent on the economic state of their region. Furthermore, the current regulatory landscape was discussed and how it influences both bank’s product offering in the EU. Second, Marion Leslie (Head Financial Information and Member of the Executive Board, SIX) and Vincent Kaufmann (CEO of Ethos Foundation and Ethos Services) discussed the role of data and its challenges for companies, when they are trying to report their impacts, and for investors, who need data to make informed decisions. While data availability and quality has improved in the last years, both panelists agreed that transparency must increase in order to fill the gaps that are currently solved through data models.
The last panel, featuring Michael Baldinger (Chief Sustainability Officer, UBS Group AG), Kirsten Schuijt (Director General of WWF International), and Christoph Baumann (Envoy for Sustainable Finance, State Secretariat for International Finance) painted an interesting picture of sustainable finance in the next ten years. Micheal Baldinger noted that he is pleased to be witnessing more and more high-net worth clients coming to realize that ignoring sustainable finance approach will leave their assets stranded and he believes that assisting clients in this transition will be crucial in the next years. Dr. Kirsten Schuijt, is delighted that WWF is now a regular actor in sustainable finance discussions and believes that shifting the large sums of AUM that currently have net-negative nature impacts is the biggest priority for the next ten years. Christoph Baumann noted that alongside these opportunities, the biggest urgency is for comparable reporting around sustainability, which would allow professionals and clients to better evaluate sustainability efforts and corresponding targets between organisations.
SSF/AMAS Webinar: "Swiss Climate Scores Template 2.0 Launch"
The Swiss Federal Council updated the Swiss Climate Scores at the end of December 2023. Together with a joint workgroup of industry experts, SSF and the Asset Management Association Switzerland (AMAS) have updated the Swiss Climate Scores template accordingly. This new version of the template aims to add clarity to the new additions to the Swiss Climate Scores and improve the previous template in response to feedback received from practitioners. The indicators are split between an examination of current state (greenhouse gas emissions and exposure to fossil fuel activities) and the transition to net zero (verified commitments to net-zero and management to net-zero, credible stewardship and global warming potential).
At the launch webinar, Christoph Baumann, Deputy Head Strategy Division & Envoy for Sustainable Finance at the State Secretariat for International Finance SIF, will inform about the motivation to update the SCS, followed by Aurelia Fäh, Senior Sustainability Expert, AMAS, providing an overview of the changes to the template. This is followed by a discussion around the opportunities and challenges related to Swiss Climate Score reporting with Ruben Feldman, Dep. Head Sustainability, Zürcher Kantonalbank and Barthélémy Simon, Sustainability Data Analyst, Lombard Odier, hosted by Sabine Döbeli, CEO, SSF.
Swiss Sustainable Investment Market Study Launch Webinar
In the market study launch webinar, Sabine Döbeli, CEO SSF, gave a welcome note on the current environment of sustainability-related investments. Prof. Timo Busch, University of Hamburg, then presented the findings of the report, including the three different perspectives on investments. Further, Eric Prüssner, AIR and Hendrik Kimmerle, SSF, both co-authors of the report, provided deeper insights into the report and the related sustainable investment approaches. Katja Brunner, SSF, then presented an update on Swiss and EU regulation with an outlook on future developments. Finally, Sabine Döbeli concluded the event with a panel discussion and Q&A session with Nina Fakner, Raiffeisen Switzerland, and Fabio Pellizzari, ZKB Asset Management.
SSF/Global Canopy Webinar: Getting Started with Deforestation Risks in Investment Portfolios
This webinar, held in partnership with Global Canopy, highlighted the importance of considering deforestation risks in investment decisions. After a short introduction by Veronica Baker, Project Manager, SSF, Helen Beddow, Education and Learning Director, Global Canopy, provided an overview of deforestation as a material consideration and introduced various tools for assessing deforestation risk. Vemund Olsen, Senior Sustainability Analyst, Storebrand Asset Management AS, and Kiran Sehra, Biodiversity Analyst, Aviva Investors, then presented case studies on how they integrate such tools and assess deforestation risks in their investment decisions within their respective companies.
Swiss Sustainable Lending Market Study Launch Event
The event focused on the first Swiss Sustainable Lending Market Study, which was published on the same day in collaboration with ZHAW. After welcoming remarks by Sabine Döbeli, CEO, SSF, and Beat Affolter, Professor & Head of Corporate Performance and Sustainable Financing, ZHAW, the lead authors of the study, Hendrik Kimmerle, Senior Project Manager, SSF, and Andreas Schweizer, Senior Lecturer in Corporate Banking & Sustainable Financing, ZHAW, presented the main findings. These included among others, the types of exclusions used by banks, the main motivations for sustainable lending and the current range of green, social and sustainability-linked loans.
To provide practical insights, Thomas Fonk, Head of Relationship Management Corporate & Large Clients, Basler Kantonalbank, and Lukas Gisiger, Client Advisor Multinationals, UBS Switzerland AG, presented their banks' approaches to sustainable lending. This was followed by a panel discussion with Regula Hess, Lead Financial Sector Engagement, WWF Switzerland. The audience was able to ask questions via Slido, sparking an interesting discussion on sustainable lending issues and the different views of the panelists.
Carbon Markets and Their Role in the Transition to a Climate Aligned Economy
At this event, jointly organised by SSF and Università della Svizzera italiana (USI), alongside the Lugano Commodity Trading Association, which was held as a hybrid event, in person in Lugano and online, leading carbon market experts provided different perspectives on the role of carbon markets in the transition to a climate aligned economy.
After the welcome note by Alberto Stival, Director Ticino, SSF, Prof. Eric Nowak, USI, first provided an overview on the role of compliance and voluntary carbon markets and key players of the ecosystem. He highlighted challenges of such instruments, that are similar for both systems but illustrated how they do effectively contribute to the reduction of carbon emissions, despite existing shortcomings of the systems. Margaret Kim, CEO, The Gold Standard, explained the value chain of carbon markets and the roles of the different players and stressed the importance of uniform standards to improve quality of credits. She showed concrete examples of how carbon projects not only remove carbon but also improve the livelihood of communities in target countries. Francesco Taddei, Senior Manager for Carbon Projects & Trading, Southpole, then illustrated how carbon credits can not only drive emission reductions, but also serve as a tool for scalability and can support sustainable development.
After the break, Sergio P. Ermotti, Group CEO and President of the Executive Board of UBS Group AG, illustrated the bank’s approach to climate finance being implemented across all business segments. He made clear that besides more incentives, the market also needs more rules and clearer frameworks for effective carbon markets. In the consecutive panel discussion with Peter Zonneveld, CEO, DTX Climate Solutions, Stefano Borghi, Chairman, Arborify and Volker Schieck, Lead, Sustainable Finance Group, UBS Group AG, the speakers debated the role of carbon trading, a market that is far less standardised than commodity trading. They agreed that bringing together voluntary and compliance markets would help improve and align standards and accelerate growth, leading to the faster implementation of much needed emission reduction projects. In her closing note, Sabine Döbeli, CEO, SSF, made clear that this event was only the starting point for a continued exchange between industry experts, academics and stakeholders, a dialogue that needs to continue to strengthen the credibility and effectiveness of carbon markets in Switzerland and internationally.
An article in Corriere del Ticino provided a summary of the event: https://www.cdt.ch/news/economia/un-prezzo-sulle-emissioni-per-la-neutralita-climatica-346713
SSF/GCNSL Getting Started with the TNFD Framework Webinar
At this joint webinar with the UN Global Compact Network for Switzerland and Liechtenstein, with whom we co-convene the Swiss TNFD Consultation Group, we hosted a one hour webinar on getting started with the TNFD Framework. After an introduction to the importance of nature and the structure of the TNFD Framework by Veronica Baker, Project Manager at SSF and Fabienne Sigg, Programme Manager at UN Global Compact Network for Switzerland and Liechtenstein, two case studies outlined their progresss in using the TNFD framework. From Novartis, Barbara Vrede, Head Strategy, Sustainability and ESG and Cameron Borhani, Senior Strategy Manager, presented their intial use of the LEAP approach to understand the nature impacts upstream and for direct operations. From UBS, Judson Berkey, Managing Director, Group Head Engagement and Regulatory Strategy, shared how UBS has begun measuring nature risk exposures alongside those for climate.
SSF Derivatives in Sustainable Investing Webinar
The webinar accompanied the new SSF Spotlight publication, published on 11 December, titled “The Role of Derivatives in Sustainable Investing", which contains guidance on how to align the use of derivatives with sustainability objectives. In this webinar Prof. Dr. Peter Schwendner, Head of the Institute of Wealth & Asset Management, ZHAW School of Management and Law and Dr. Hendrik Kimmerle, Senior Project Manager at SSF, will present the findings of the report. Industry expert Dr. Luca Henzen, Head Derivatives and Structured Products Research at UBS AG (Global Wealth Mangement) will share his perspective on portfolio implementation of derivatives and structured products. Slides and recording are available for SSF members.
