Mr Markus Leitner, Switzerland’s Ambassador to the United Kingdom, hosted a discussion at the Swiss Embassy in London about sustainable finance.
Mr Leitner, who has been Switzerland’s Ambassador to the United Kingdom since 2021, hosted the dialogue on Tuesday last week. The dialogue saw a panel of executives and experts discussing a range of questions on how governments can collaborate with the private sector to accelerate the transition towards a sustainable future.
At the top: London and Zurich
The event comes after news that the United Kingdom and Switzerland have topped the Global Green Finance Index. Mike Wardle, Simon Mills and Professor Michael Mainelli – the authors of the Global Green Finance Index 14 report – ranked London and Zurich in first and second place respectively.
Geneva, meanwhile, is ranked fourth, which is ahead of of New York, Stockholm and Los Angeles. Geneva in regional rankings of Western Europe, however, is ranked third after London and Zurich. “London led the region, with Zurich in second place, followed by Geneva, and Stockholm.”, reads the report.
The high rankings of both countries is likely to bolster Swiss-UK relations, experts have said.
Last week’s event is yet another sign of the ever growing closer relationship between the two countries. After Ambassador Mr Markus Leitner’s opening remarks, Dr Nina Seega, Director of Centre for Sustainable Finance, from the University of the Cambridge hosted the dialogue. Speakers at the event included Mr Patrick Odier, President of Swiss Sustainable Finance; Dr Rhian-Mari Thomas OBE, CEO, Green Finance Institute; and Dr Steve Waygood.
The panel discussion was then followed by Dr Nina Seega’s conversation with UBS’ representative Ms Beatriz Martin Jimenez. Ms Jimenez is the Group Executive Board Lead for Sustainability and Impact at UBS.
The latest latest developments in sustainable finance in Switzerland, the UK and across the world was the main topic of the evening. The speakers and panelists also discussed how governments can help channel private capital to accelerate the transition to clean, resilient and environmentally sustainable economies.
Commenting on a successful dialogue, Ambassador Mr Markus Leitner said: “London, Zurich and Geneva top the Global Green Finance Index.
“Another reason to bring together executives and experts at @SwissEmbassyUK for a 🇨ðŸ‡-🇬🇧 dialogue on using finance to accelerate the transition to net zero & a more #sustainable economy”, he said.
The Embassy of Switzerland in the United Kingdom, in a social media post on LinkedIn, thanked “Finance Swiss and Swiss Business Hub UK for supporting the event”.
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By Raza Hussain | Recently featured in The Telegraph, The i Paper, POLITICO Europe and Tim Walker’s column | Editor of www.NewsLeaf.com | Former social media officer at Gina Miller’s True & Fair Party | Currently a Senior Advisor at a think tank and a foundation | Extra-Mile Winner of the Newsquest Young Reporter Scheme (2014) | Talent for Writing certificate by Young Writers (2015) | Travel blogger | Prize for Outstanding Achievement in Sociology (2019) | Social media PR and political communication
