The size of the sustainable asset management industry is expected to reach $ trillion by the end of 2020,10 almost twice the amount in 2016.11 Green finance instruments have grown very rapidly in response to strong demand.12 Issues of green bonds exceeded $ billion in 2019, with a possible new record in 2020; the total outstanding amount has reached $ trillion.13 According to one source, the net inflows in US sustainable investment funds hit a record $ billion in 2019, nearly four times as much as in the previous year.14 The number of institutional investors that signed the UN Principles of Responsible Investment has soared to 2,829, accounting for $ trillion of assets under management; by subscribing, those investors have committed to seeking appropriate disclosure on ESG issues from the entities in which they invest.15 As an aside, it is welcome news for my country that one top data provider has recently placed Italian sovereign bonds among the least risky in the euro area after adjusting for transition and physical risks, and for economic resilience.16 This is linked to the fact that, as of 2020, the country has achieved all the European energy and climate targets.17 To ensure that the drive towards sustainability in finance is itself sustainable, much remains to be done.
the use of economic and monetary analysis – has given us very useful guidance in determining the appropriate monetary policy stance for maintaining stable prices in the euro area. I appreciate that in Markus Brunnermeier’s new conceptual framework that he presented today, the monitoring of credit growth and monetary aggregates is identified as an essential ingredient of successful monetary policy making.