Mark Carney wants more green bonds, Bitcoin technology and mobile banking to help deliver on United Nations’ climate change goals
Mark Carney has said the expansion of environmentally-friendly finance products will help the world economy fight climate change and enhance economic stability around the planet.
The governor of the Bank of England said that innovative ideas such as "green bonds", which are used to fund projects that have a positive impact on the environment, along with blockchain technology and the growth of mobile banking could play a leading role in minimising the damaging effects of climate change.
“Financial policymakers will not drive the transition to a low-carbon economy,” Carney told an audience of heads of state and climate change groups at the United Nations (UN) yesterday, as he called on national governments and politicians to help create the banking and finance frameworks to ensure the process of decarbonisation is as smooth as possible.
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Tackling climate change and delivering on the UN’s other targets for poverty alleviation, gender equality and education standards – named the “sustainable development goals” – “will require mainstream finance”, Carney said.
“Early awareness of the risks and opportunities associated with a low-carbon economy will attract mainstream institutional capital. Financing the decarbonisation of our economy is a major opportunity for investors,” he added.
The governor, who is also chair of the Financial Stability Board, has taken a prominent role in talking about the financial dangers of climate change in the last few years and was speaking ahead of the signing ceremony for the climate deal reached in Paris at the end of last year.