Focus on GFEC signatory: LIBF

Green Finance Institute / Sustainable Finance Education Charter / Focus on GFEC signatory: The London Institute of Banking & Finance

We exist to advance banking and finance by providing outstanding education and thinking, tailored to the needs of business, individuals, and society. We’ve been at the heart of the sector since 1879.

We are a university college, a professional body, and a registered charity. Our focus is on lifelong learning; equipping individuals with the knowledge, skills, and qualifications to achieve their aspirations throughout their career and life. Our qualifications include GCSE and A Level equivalents in financial education, full time degrees in banking and finance, postgraduate certificates, and professional qualifications. We also work with communities to improve financial capability.

We are The London Institute of Banking & Finance, lifelong partners for financial education.

Who are LIBF’s Members?
We have a global community in over 120 countries around the world. Our members work in all kinds of roles throughout the finance sector. They could be trade finance professionals, retail or corporate bankers, compliance managers, relationship managers, financial advisers, mortgage advisers, investment advisers or fund managers, to name but a few. Anyone who works in financial services can join LIBF. We also have student members – those studying our degree programmes and professionals studying our qualifications in banking and finance.
How does green finance affect them?
The financial sector has a critical role to play in helping countries achieve the development and environmental targets as laid out in the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and The Paris Agreement on climate change. It is through sustainable finance that financial markets will be able to adjust and allocate resources effectively.

Everyone working in the sector has a responsibility to take sustainability into account, whether they work at a corporate level in banking, investment, or trade finance, or advise individuals. That requires an ongoing commitment to developing their knowledge and skills on sustainability and understanding the impacts of their business.

What is LIBF doing to support its members?
Our job is to support the sector in developing knowledge and approaches to sustainable finance. We established our Centre for Sustainable Finance as a hub to connect experts, and to share information and knowledge. As part of this we regularly publish white papers on sustainability issues, working with academics and organisations around the world.

Our qualifications have sustainability embedded through them, and we recently launched our Certificate in Sustainable Finance. We’ve also partnered with Coastline to provide a short course on Sustainability in Trade and Trade Finance.

Green Finance Education Resources Available

Gender diversity: A quest for equal opportunity in financial services

Biodiversity risk in the finance sector

Fintech and sustainability
The S and the G instead of the E
What are climate change stress tests and why are they needed?
Has Covid changed the EU’s attitude to climate change?
Post Covid – will views on sustainability change?
Good investing for the future: ESG for financial advisers
Gender diversity in financial services

Find out more about our support for the Green Finance Education Charter:

LIBF’s Centre for Sustainable Finance

Chris McHugh, Director of the Centre for Sustainable Finance, LIBF said:
Committed professionals with an understanding of the critical role of financial services in supporting the transition to a low carbon world, are vital. Now is the time for our global network to play their part.