BlackRock Contracted for EU Bank ESG Advice
(11 April 2020 - Europe) BlackRock has been selected to advise the European Union (EU) on how to integrate sustainability into banking regulation.
The announcement highlights the group’s close relationship with policymakers globally, marking a victory for the asset manager’s very public efforts to promote its ‘green’ credentials. The €280,000 European Commission contract will help to bolster the company’s criticised credibility on environmental, social and governance (ESG) investing after winning out over eight unnamed rivals to secure the role.
As the world's largest asset manager with a vast passive investing business, BlackRock funds own large stakes in most of the world's listed companies, including large oil and gas groups.
The European Commission confirmed BlackRock’s Financial Markets Advisory division will investigate how the EU could use ESG factors in the prudential supervision and regulatory risk analysis of the region’s banks. BlackRock will also analyse how the EU could boost the growth of green finance and the market for sustainable financial products.
“BlackRock’s proposal was the best offer compared to the other tenders, both technically and financially. The BlackRock study will only be one of the many reports and consultations that will inform the commission’s policy on sustainable finance” a spokesperson for the commission said in a statement.
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