1. DUKAP Sustainable Finance Web conference in February 2021

1. March 2021

How can long-term corporate strategies and ESG investments be financed? How will political sustainability goals shape the regulatory landscape for capital providers and companies? What does a company’s management need to know about ESG finance issues? What impact will ESG compliance have on new financing? Should existing financing be restructured? These and other questions were discussed by experts and 100 participants at the 1st DUKAP Sustainable Finance Web Conference via livestream.

Keynote speaker Professor Tobias Popovic, Head of the Centre for Sustainable Business and Management (ZNWM) at the University of Applied Sciences in Stuttgart defined the horizon of expectations. One of the Landesbank Baden-Württemberg’s legal advisors provided detailed insights into the changed legal framework for future financing agreements, as well as explaining ESG rating requirements and potential funding pitfalls. Thought leaders and leading experts from BNP Paribas, Deutsche Bank, DZ Bank and UniCredit vividly presented their institutions’ ESG strategies and their new products.

From the lively exchange with the audience, it was clear that there is a great thirst for knowledge and information on sustainable financing issues. The questions of whether a CFO should expect adjustments to existing loan agreements, which sustainable finance strategies the participating banks are pursuing in pricing and lending decisions, and what factors play a role in a company receiving its first ESG rating, all met with particular interest. In conclusion, DUKAP provided the participating financial decision-makers with specific recommendations for action.

All of the conference’s speakers appeared free of charge, which enabled DUKAP to pass on a significant sum from the participants’ fees to the Yunus Social Business (YSB) fundraising project, which provides loans to micro-entrepreneurs in developing regions of the world.