2024 Report on Global Sustainable Finance and Low Carbon Development

Since the Industrial Revolution of the 19th century, technological advancements have fueled unprecedented prosperity for human society. However, the reliance on fossil fuel consumption has led to significant industrial pollution, environmental degradation, and an escalating climate crisis. In response, the concept of sustainable development began to take shape in the 1970s and has since become a globally recognized and pursued model for economic growth. The rising demand for financial services aligned with sustainable development objectives has catalyzed the growth of sustainable finance. In essence, Sustainable Finance integrates the objectives of environmental protection, social responsibility, and governance (ESG) into traditional financial activities and investment decisions.
Among the various sustainable development objectives, addressing climate change caused by greenhouse gas emissions is one of the most urgent challenges. In September 2020, China’s President Xi Jinping announced at the United Nations General Assembly that China aims to peak its carbon emissions by 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2060, establishing the country's overarching climate action goals. On August 11, 2024, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the State Council issued the "Opinions on Accelerating the Comprehensive Green Transition of Economic and Social Development," marking the first national-level strategy for accelerating a comprehensive green transition. The goal is to establish a green, low-carbon, and circular economic system by 2035. Throughout this process, enterprises will undoubtedly play a pivotal role as both key practitioners and core drivers in the "comprehensive, collaborative, innovative, and secure" transformation of China's economy and society.
While businesses are motivated to align with sustainable development trends, significant financial support is required for their transformation efforts. Furthermore, the transition involves rising costs, policy uncertainties, and technological risks. As a result, although half of global publicly listed companies have committed to net-zero emissions, there remains a substantial gap between aspirational visions and actual actions. Sustainable finance should help bridge this gap by establishing financial market mechanisms that align with climate action goals, it means to lower the cost of low-carbon investments, mitigating risks associated with these assets, and increasing the cost of holding carbon-intensive assets. This would direct more "smart" capital toward low-carbon transition projects.
This report, jointly produced by the China Europe International Business School (CEIBS) Lujiazui International Institute of Finance (CLIIF) and the CEIBS Finance MBA (FMBA) Programme, aims to track and analyze the progress of sustainable finance and corporate decarbonization, with a particular focus on the development of green initiatives in Chinese enterprises. The goal is to track and provide first-hand, reliable, and relevant data reviews and analyses to international and domestic, public and private, corporate and investment institutes, to serve China's "dual carbon" goals and broader sustainable development strategies.