Sustainability

Capital Calls: Real estate distress is tricky call

15 October 2021

Concise views on global finance: Barry Sternlicht’s Starwood Capital has raised a $10 bln fund to buy struggling buildings. With the pandemic's long-term effects unclear, the key will be avoiding those destined to remain empty.

Green clouds blow forcefully into Canberra

15 October 2021

Miner South32 is the latest Aussie company to bow to climate-conscious shareholders. Its carbon-friendly deal coincides with central banker Guy Debelle warning that overseas investors may dump assets over the country’s net-zero dithering. Financiers may cast the deciding vote.

Green transition needs a wider focus than oil cuts

13 October 2021

Fossil fuel investment has fallen to levels that would limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, the IEA says. Yet measures to hike green energy and curb demand are just as important, and lagging. Unless states act, high energy prices risk becoming an ongoing headache.

High fashion has golden shot at green revamp

12 October 2021

LVMH has recovered from Covid-19. With a record valuation and lavish cash flows, the $370 bln luxury giant can afford an overdue splurge on axing its carbon footprint. Setting the trend in an industry that accounts for 4% of emissions will also pile pressure on rivals.

EU cheer only partly masks green bond shortcomings

12 October 2021

The bloc’s debut 12 bln euro issue of debt earmarked for environmental aims was a big success and may encourage more launches. But such securities only incentivise sustainable behaviour if issuers can borrow at cheaper rates. That’s not always the case.

Capital Calls: Australia’s climate change

12 October 2021

Concise views on global finance: Prime Minister Scott Morrison may yet unveil a national emissions-reduction plan for COP26 after winning cover from a major business group, the biggest state, and the Murdoch press.

Road to COP: Mark Carney on finance’s climate role

12 October 2021

The UN climate envoy is enlisting banks, asset managers, insurers and others in wide efforts to keep global warming to no more than 1.5 degrees. He tells Rob Cox what to expect from the industry at Glasgow, how multilateral development banks need to “up their ambition” and more.

Eni’s green listing shows appropriate restraint

12 October 2021

The $50 bln Italian oil major’s renewables IPO may value it at 10 bln euros. Recent efforts by rivals don’t inspire confidence, but Eni’s offer blends a nascent green power business with its more established energy retail arm. That should get takers at a more modest valuation.

Capital Calls: Green investors, ASOS, Renren

11 October 2021

Concise views on global finance: Al Gore’s asset manager finds listed equities can influence a larger chunk of global emissions; the online retailer parts company with its CEO; the startup investor’s $300 mln settlement with aggrieved investors is likely to be an exception.

Time for bank holdouts to join Carney’s green club

8 October 2021

Most big western lenders have joined the ex-BoE boss’s GFANZ group pledging tough climate targets. Yet those run by Jamie Dimon, Charlie Scharf, Andrea Orcel and David Solomon have yet to do so. As with taking state capital in 2008, taking part makes more sense than holding out.

Chancellor: Going green is everything except easy

6 October 2021

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson told the United Nations just weeks ago that transitioning to a carbon-neutral economy would be a cinch. Oops. The global energy crisis changes everything. Not least, it makes the cost of jettisoning hydrocarbons a great deal more expensive.

Mining magnate is Greta’s unlikely kindred spirit

6 October 2021

Fortescue boss Andrew Forrest goes beyond the climate activist’s “blah blah blah” net-zero dismissal by calling such targets “a lie”. He’s basically right, but his own company clings to the carbon trope. The ambition on green hydrogen and Scope 3 targets, however, is welcome.

Road to COP: How can banks stop planetary frying?

5 October 2021

In the first instance, financial institutions can reduce travel budgets and replace radiators in office buildings and branches. The real leverage comes in how they manage customer assets and deploy balance sheets, UBS Chief Executive Ralph Hamers says in a chat with Rob Cox.

Cox: How Greta can transition from blah blah blah

4 October 2021

The young Swedish climate activist grabbed headlines in Milan at the runup to COP26 last week, castigating “so-called leaders” for talking much and acting too little. She’s got a point. But generational resentment won’t halt global warming. She’d be better off going nuclear.

Capital Calls: Pandora, Facebook files pack punch

4 October 2021

Concise views on global finance: A leak with rich people’s offshore activities and a Facebook exposé reinforce perceptions with facts; GitLab’s float shows Microsoft’s wise 2018 buy; Volvo IPO aims to supercharge EV plans; BT’s bid to rule UK broadband may face U.S. competition.

Solvay activist’s Greenpeace costume doesn’t wash

4 October 2021

Smug from shaking up Danone, Bluebell Capital is chiding the chemicals group for dumping limestone on a Tuscan beach. With only token economic exposure, its bid to oust boss Ilham Kadri lacks heft. It’s also unclear what other investors gain from joining its eco-warrior campaign.

Rivian risks reckless run onto public markets

4 October 2021

The electric-vehicle maker backed by Amazon and BlackRock only just started selling its first model. It’s also burning cash fast and Jeff Bezos’s e-commerce empire has the upper hand as a big customer for delivery vans. A mooted $80 bln valuation sounds like a runaway IPO.

Capital Calls: Biodiversity, Email, Gene IPO

30 September 2021

Concise views on global finance: Taskforce on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures gets a nature-based counterpart; Sweden’s Sinch clinches its fourth communication-software deal in seven months; a 40% bounce on Oxford Nanopore's market debut puts some life into London.

Road to COP: Italy’s ecological transition chief

28 September 2021

Prime Minister Mario Draghi picked Roberto Cingolani, a trained physicist, from the private sector to lead the country’s mega-ministry combining environment and energy. As Milan hosts the warmup to the COP26, Cingolani discusses Italy’s role in the global decarbonization fight.

Capital Calls: U.S. debt, Hollywood, Blue Prism

28 September 2021

Concise views on global finance: Republicans have blocked additional federal borrowing, bringing a default closer; talent agencies CAA, ICM, and Endeavor take different strategic directions; private equity group Vista seems to be getting UK software group Blue Prism cheaply.