Speech by Frank Elderson, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB and Vice-Chair of the Supervisory Board of the ECB, at the tenth Green Finance Forum “Innovate in Nature”

Frankfurt am Main, 19 November 2024

Thank you for inviting me to speak at the opening of the tenth Green Finance Forum. I fully subscribe to the theme of today’s forum, given how vitally important it is to “innovate in nature”. Especially because in many ways nature is still not accounted for in policies, regulation and risk management, but it should be, considering its vital importance for the economy – including the financial system. This morning I will outline how the relevance of nature is being confirmed by incoming research and how the European Central Bank (ECB) is acting on this to deliver on its mandate of maintaining price stability and preserving the safety and soundness of banks.

A thriving natural environment provides many benefits that sustain human well-being and the global economy….