Stockholm(NordSIP) – Every year, the University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (CISL), an impact-led institute within the University of Cambridge that activates leadership globally to transform economies for people, nature and climate, publishes its “Scaling finance for nature”.
Last year’s report, published as international delegates were gathering in Cali, Colombia for COP16, focused on the barriers to scaling finance for nature. That report argued that the private sector should consider the relatively large amounts needed to support the Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) and the risk that inaction would represent to their respective value chains, which could be worth a US$2.7 trillion shock to global GDP by 2030.
CISL’s 2025 report, published on October 6th, offers a “primer on what financial institutions are doing today” and calls on them to drastically scale up their investments in “nature recovery finance” to combat biodiversity loss and environmental degradation. The report emphasises that nature-positive finance is not limited to conservation efforts but includes integrating environmental considerations into mainstream financial decision-making.
“This report shows investors have the power to shift capital away from activities that harm nature and are already making this happen. Aligning portfolios with nature-positive outcomes safeguards long-term value and opens new opportunities for growt,” Victoria Leggett, Co-Chair, Investment Leaders Group, Senior Advisor to Union Bancaire Privée
Four Levers For Change
This year’s report identifies four key levers for financial institutions to drive this change: embedding nature into corporate stewardship, incorporating nature into financial decision-making processes, creating products and services to incentivise change, and actively engaging with policymakers.
CISL’s report argues that by adopting these strategies, the financial sector can play a pivotal role in reducing activities that harm nature and increasing support for restorative initiatives. According to the report, the cumulative effect of incremental improvements has the potential to be significant.
The report illustrates what these levers for change look like and how they can be used through several real-world examples including actions taken by banks, investors, and insurers to integrate nature considerations into their operations.
Nordic Case Studies
Among the examples discussed in the report, the report cites two standout Nordic examples. In one instance, Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM) used satellite imaging to assess the fund’s exposure to nature. In another case, SEB Asset Management influenced investee companies by linking executive pay to sustainability targets, driving tangible positive impact.
“Using geospatial data through GIST Impact 22, which maps the intersection between natural assets and individual company operations, NBIM estimated the proportion of their portfolio companies’ operations that are near to Key Biodiversity Areas (KBAs), which are areas of extreme importance for species and their habitats 37. Similarly, NBIM’s geospatial assessment extended to water (a non-living component of nature), specifically areas under significant water stress and demand,” CISL’s report explains.
“In 2022, SEB Asset Management contacted 100 Swedish investee companies to encourage integrating sustainability targets into executive pay schemes. They believe that linking these targets to incentive programmes signals a company’s commitment and drives organisational change. By 2024, 22 companies had ESG metrics in long-term incentives (up from 14 in 2022), and 16 in short-term incentives (up from 12),” the report notes.
Realigning Financial Flows
The report’s call for transparency in advocacy and engagement with policymakers highlights potential areas for Nordic financial institutions to further demonstrate regional leadership in sustainable finance. While the report does not explicitly focus on any single country or region, the findings are relevant to Nordic countries whose high level of environmental awareness is already creating high demand for sustainable financial products.
The report emphasises that integrating nature into their strategies empowers financial institutions to act for nature through their mainstream finance practice. One of the report’s main conclusions is that the most impactful action that financial institutions can take is to reduce and halt nature loss is realigning nature-negative financial flows.
