Insights & Perspectives

The release of the updated environmental management standard by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) may, at first glance, appear to be a routine technical revision. In reality, it reflects a much deeper transformation in how environmental management is being positioned within organisations. What was once primarily a compliance-driven function is now evolving into a strategic capability, directly influencing how companies assess risk, allocate capital, and

In periods of geopolitical instability, capital does not disappear; it reallocates. The recent announcement by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) to deploy up to €5 billion into economies affected by the Middle East conflict is therefore more than a financing decision. It is a directional signal. One that reflects how development finance institutions are increasingly positioning themselves not only as providers of capital, but as anchors of economic s

The era of Chinese sovereign megaloans has ended, shifting to a smaller, fragmented model of intermediary lending and “small and beautiful” projects. China has genuinely exited overseas coal finance, yet public renewable lending has not scaled up, and smaller projects now show higher overlap with environmentally sensitive areas. Success will depend not on volume, but on stronger safeguards, transparency, and governance to make smaller finance truly better.