Finresp joins the UN Financial Centers for Sustainability Network

The Financial Center for Sustainability in Spain (Finresp), based in Madrid, is an initiative of AEB, CECA, Inverco, Unacc, and Unespa.

It was established with the aim of addressing the needs of SMEs to adapt to the demands of the upcoming Climate Change Law.

The Financial Center for Sustainability in Spain (Finresp) has joined the International Network of Financial Centers for Sustainability (FC4S) promoted by the United Nations Environment Programme, which aims to ensure that sufficient private capital is allocated to ecological and climate-friendly investments.

Finresp, created in 2019 by the main associations in the financial sector—AEB, CECA, Inverco, Unacc, and Unespa—thus becomes the twenty-seventh member of the United Nations international network whose goal is to exchange experiences and undertake common actions to accelerate the expansion of green and sustainable financing.

Based in Madrid, this center was born with the vocation of specifically addressing the challenges and needs of the business fabric and small and medium-sized enterprises to adapt to the requirements of the upcoming Climate Change Law and to the recent regulatory proposals on sustainable finance presented by the European Commission.

For the president of the Spanish Banking Association, José María Roldán, “with this adherence to the International Network of Financial Centers for Sustainability, our center joins the thriving international movement for sustainable finance led by major global corporations in compliance with the Paris Agreement. We want to learn from the experiences developed in other countries and even launch joint initiatives that can help our companies adapt to the Climate Change Law and thus become increasingly respectful of the environment and a concept of a fairer and more sustainable economy.”

José María Méndez, general director of CECA, also stated that “this action demonstrates the commitment of Spanish retail banking and Finresp to promote responsible banking. Our main purpose is to carry out joint actions to accelerate the expansion of a green economy and a culture with environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) criteria among SMEs in our country.”

For the president of Inverco, Ángel Martínez-Aldama, “the adherence of Finresp to the International Network of Financial Centers for Sustainability underscores the commitment of the asset management industry and the entire financial community to sustainable finance, which already represents one of the main driving forces in channeling investment flows towards a sustainable future.”

Pilar González de Frutos, president of Unespa, believes that the recent step taken by Finresp to join FC4S is “an excellent opportunity for the insurance business to contribute to addressing environmental, social, and governance risks and opportunities.”