New Zealand financial companies and organisations will embrace upcoming changes today announced by government for them
to report on their annual emissions, FintechNZ general manager James Brown says.
Aotearoa NZ has become the first country in the world to introduce a law that requires the financial sector to disclose
the impacts of climate change on their business.
Becoming the first country in the world to introduce a law like this means Aotearoa can pave the way for other countries
to make climate-related disclosures mandatory.
The legislation will make climate-related disclosures mandatory for around 200 organisations, including most listed
issuers, large banks, licensed insurers and managers of investment schemes.
“As we continue to see technology evolve, companies must also do the same,” Brown says.
“Open finance will enable a consumer to easily identify and track where their investments are being placed. This will
create more transparency especially around fees and return.
“FinTech can have a significant positive impact on climate change, hence the reason the UK invested five billion pounds
and opened the world’s first green fintech bank.
“We expect to see consumers begin to invest more in green fintech. These changes will help build some trust that was
lost in the financial services sector as it won’t just be about the highest rate of return it will be about ethical
investing,” Brown says.