Green finance is booming but needs a step change for ‘net zero’ goals to be reached

Annual investment needs to double, and quickly, for Europe to hit its green targets. And, surprise, surprise, the UK is lagging, writes James Moore

The required range in annual investment required is somewhere between €600bn and €1 trillion in Europe (AFP via Getty)

Greening the world will take a vast wall of capital investment. Are we even close to seeing it built?

There is both a glass-half-full and a glass-half-empty case to be made, at least judging by a report – A Reality Check on Green Finance – published today by New Financial, a think tank founded on the belief that capital markets can and should be a force for economic and social good.

The half-full case is that the value of green finance raised via EU and UK capital markets – which will be essential if the world is to stand any hope of making good on commitments made at the Paris Climate Accords – has grown rapidly over the last five years.