On 14 March, the Luxembourg Stock Exchange (LuxSE), home to the Luxembourg Green Exchange (LGX) and Sacred Heart University Luxembourg (SHULU) co-organised a conference on the topic of “Financing a Sustainable Future, Trends from Luxembourg” at the Chamber of Commerce, in Kirchberg, Luxembourg.
Together with special guest Marc-André Bechet, Deputy Director General of the Association of the Luxembourg Fund Industry (ALFI), LuxSE’s Sustainability Research Manager Paul Chahine held a 1-hour presentation on sustainable finance trends in Luxembourg, covering both the fund industry and debt capital markets.
From left to right: Paul Chahine, LuxSE's Sustainability Research Manager and Marc-André Bechet, ALFI's Deputy Director General at the Chamber of Commerce, Luxembourg.
Paul Chahine introduced the audience to sustainable finance and discussed the key role capital markets play in reorienting capital flows towards investment projects with positive environmental or social outcomes. Marc-André Bechet, on the other hand, focused on discussing the role of the fund industry in supporting the goal of keeping temperatures below 1.5° C above pre-industrial levels. Participants also had the opportunity to have all their questions answered through an extensive Q&A session. The conference was followed by a networking session where participants had the chance to continue the discussion with the speakers.
Boosting knowledge through the LGX Academy
Established in May 2020, the LGX Academy offers financial professionals, students, and the broader public courses on the foundations of sustainable finance, its products, standards and labels, applicable regulation and common market practice. In 2021 alone, the LGX Academy trained over 200 participants from a diverse range of institutions including private banks, multilateral development banks, research centres, consultancies, asset managers, professional services firms, stock exchanges, as well as university students.
2021 was a busy year for the LGX Academy, marked by robust growth in its overall course offering, bespoke trainings, and university lectures. To further increase its scope and reach, the LGX Academy has established strong partnerships with several key players and institutions. This has allowed LGX to foster unity and avoid fragmentation around sustainable finance education, as it continues to grow.
The start of a strong collaboration with SHULU
For the LGX Academy, 2022 started as strongly as the previous year ended in terms of sustainable finance education. One fruitful example of successful knowledge sharing is the above-mentioned conference, co-organised with SHULU with a guest speaker from ALFI. Since 1963, SHU has educated business leaders on its main campus, located in Fairfield, Connecticut. In 1991, SHU opened its Luxembourg branch. Since then, more than 700 business leaders from more than 40 different countries have graduated. Located in the Chamber of Commerce in Kirchberg, SHULU has established a series of partnerships with local professionals in the development of specific curriculums, including sustainable finance.
30 of SHULU’s MBA students – from the part-time, full-time, and executive MBAs – took part in the joint event and had the opportunity to hear from both Paul Chahine and Marc-André Bechet on how we can all support a greener and more resilient economy. Through this extensive presentation, LGX continues to take its steps towards its goal: shaping the views, knowledge and behaviour of the world’s future financial professionals.
Paul Chahine and Marc-André Bechet talk about how we can all support a greener and more resilient economy.
The event marks the first joint effort by SHULU and LGX to raise public awareness and promote financial literacy in Luxembourg and beyond, with a specific focus on sustainable finance.
LGX continues to lead the international sustainable finance agenda
Established in 2016, LGX is the world’s leading platform for sustainable securities and has become the reference venue for public and private issuers alike. As a meeting place for issuers of sustainable products and impact-conscious investors, LGX has a leading market share of listed green, social, sustainability, and sustainability-linked bonds worldwide, encompassing more than 1,300 sustainable bonds, with a total value of EUR 678 billion, from 230 issuers in 50 countries.
In 2020, LuxSE decided to increase its contribution to sustainable finance and expanded the scope of LGX beyond showcasing sustainable securities to also providing sustainable finance education through the LGX Academy and structured sustainability data though the LGX DataHub. That same year, LGX was awarded the prestigious 2020 UN Global Climate Action Award for its contribution to accelerating financing for climate-friendly investment.
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