ASFI November Update
We are now just two weeks away from the release of the 'Recommendations for an Australian Taxonomy' paper, which will build upon our first paper 'Scoping of International Taxonomies' to provide recommendations for the development of an Australian Sustainable Finance Taxonomy. In the meantime, you can find our international scoping paper here.
To close out the year, ASFI is thrilled to be holding an exclusive invitation-only event for C-suite Executives from ASFI Member organisations and CEOs of ASFI’s Advisory Committee members with the Australian Treasurer, the Hon. Jim Chalmers MP, in mid-December. Attendees will have the opportunity to hear the Treasurer give a private address on the Government's sustainable finance commitments and ambitions, as well as how government and financial institutions can work together to achieve accelerated progress on sustainability challenges facing Australia and the region.
ASFI progress
Taxonomy project:
The Recommendations for an Australian Taxonomy paper will be released in mid-December and will be open for public consultation until mid-February 2023.
We are continuing with our international taxonomy webinar series, which showcases international developments in sustainable finance taxonomies, and allows opportunity to share expertise and experiences. See the events section below for more details on the upcoming webinar on the UK taxonomy development.
TNFD
As part of their role as TNFD’s Australia and New Zealand consultation convener, RIAA in partnership with the Department of Climate Change, Energy, Environment and Water are hosting a series of four webinars that will help participants understand how to pilot and use the framework. ASFI has extended the invitation to our members. If you have not already done so, you can register for the first webinar here, to be held on Thursday 01 Dec at 10:00am – 11:00am.
Leadership Forum:
ASFI is holding a member and partner workshop on the 27th of October, co-hosted with KPMG, to support and collaborate with them in developing and piloting the TNFD. If you’re interested in finding out more about ASFI membership so you can get involved in these and other ASFI member activities, please get in touch.
We will be holding a panel session 'Financing toward nature positive' at the Australian Sustainable Finance Summit which will explore why the focus on natural capital and biodiversity protection is more than just a phase, discuss how early leaders are paving the way to a nature positive future, and delve into different aspects of nature-related risks and opportunities from the perspectives of asset managers, the insurance industry, banking, and credit risk and in the development of carbon and biodiversity markets.
Government Engagement
ASFI is pleased to have supported research led by the Conexus Institute together with FTSE Russell and the Responsible Investment Association of Australasia into the impact of the Your Future Your Super (YFYS) performance test. The results demonstrate that YFYS is currently constraining the ability of superannuation funds to implement strategies consistent with ESG, sustainability and carbon transition activities. The paper underscores the need to ensure that financial policy and regulation in Australia does not inadvertently hinder the pursuit of broader goals. You can read the full paper here.
ASFI submitted views on the Government’s proposed amendments to the National Housing Finance and Investment Corporation mandate. We supported the proposal to expand the NHIF mandate and made suggestions for how public funds can be used to better mobilise institutional finance and investment into social and affordable housing. View the submission here.
Events
There are a range of upcoming events which we welcome your participation in.
30 November: ASFI Public Webinar Key insights on the development of the UK Green Taxonomy. Register for the webinar here.
1 December: ASFI Public Webinar Finance Perspectives on COP27. You can register here.
12 December: ASFI Private Address with the Australian Treasurer In a private, invitation-only event, C-suite Executives from ASFI Member organisations and CEOs of ASFI’s Advisory Committee members will have the opportunity to hear from the Australian Treasurer on the Government's sustainable finance commitments and ambitions.