"Many UAE banks have seen sustainable finance as a profit center", says Vijay Bains, Group Chief Sustainability Officer and Head of ESG at Emirates NBD. In this episode of ESG Currents, Grace Osborne, BI’s ESG integration analyst for EMEA, speaks with Bains about the rising momentum of sustainable finance in the GCC and its intertwinement with the region's economic diversification plans. With UAE's national banks' pledging to mobilize AED 1 trillion in sustainable finance by 2030, alongside strengthened Nationally Determined Contributions, opportunities for capturing sustainable value creation are mounting. From water scarcity solutions to green building initiatives, the GCC is scaling its sustainability ambitions at a time where other regions in the world appear to be stepping back. 
This episode was recorded on May 1, 2025.

"Many UAE banks have seen sustainable finance as a profit center", says Vijay Bains, Group Chief Sustainability Officer and Head of ESG at Emirates NBD. In this episode of ESG Currents, Grace Osborne, BI&rsquo;s ESG integration analyst for EMEA, speaks with Bains about the rising momentum of sustainable finance in the GCC and its intertwinement with the region's economic diversification plans. With UAE's national banks' pledging to mobilize AED 1 trillion in sustainable finance by 2030, alongside strengthened Nationally Determined Contributions, opportunities for capturing sustainable value creation are mounting. From water scarcity solutions to green building initiatives, the GCC is scaling its sustainability ambitions at a time where other regions in the world appear to be stepping back. This episode was recorded on May 1, 2025.

ESG has become established as a key business theme as companies and investors seek to navigate the climate crisis, energy transition, social megatrends, mounting regulatory attention and pressure from other stakeholders. The rapidly evolving landscape has become inundated with acronyms, buzz words, and lingo and we aim to break these down with industry experts.

ESG has become established as a key business theme as companies and investors seek to navigate the climate crisis, energy transition, social megatrends, mounting regulatory attention and pressure from other stakeholders. The rapidly evolving landscape has become inundated with acronyms, buzz words, and lingo and we aim to break these down with industry experts.

ESG Currents

Bucking Trends: UAE Banks See Sustainable Finance Profit Center

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/457af308-a938-417a-af39-b2d600a34798/transcript

Can cutting methane leaks help fuel the rising energy demand from AI data centers? On this episode of the ESG Currents podcast, Carl Pope, former Sierra Club executive director, and Last Mile Production CEO Zach Wagner join BI climate analyst Andrew Stevenson to discuss how leaking and vented methane has the potential to help meet Texas’ surging power demand. Methane leaks are a major source of greenhouse gas emissions, and capturing that lost gas could help ease rising US natural gas costs.

Can cutting methane leaks help fuel the rising energy demand from AI data centers? On this episode of the ESG Currents podcast, Carl Pope, former Sierra Club executive director, and Last Mile Production CEO Zach Wagner join BI climate analyst Andrew Stevenson to discuss how leaking and vented methane has the potential to help meet Texas&rsquo; surging power demand. Methane leaks are a major source of greenhouse gas emissions, and capturing that lost gas could help ease rising US natural gas costs.

Plugging Methane Leaks to Power AI Data Centers

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/33e8230f-21d4-404f-b7e6-b3fc00ff3fab/transcript

Blended finance uses catalytic capital from public or philanthropic sources to mobilize private investment toward sustainable development — but how are these vehicles structured, and what enables them to scale? On this week’s episode of the ESG Currents podcast, Timothee Jaulin, head of responsible investment development & advocacy at Amundi, joins Shaheen Contractor, senior ESG analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence, to unpack how blended finance works in practice. The discussion breaks down how blended finance vehicles are structured — from the roles of DFIs and asset managers to tranche design, capital layering and the realities of deployment timelines. They also explore how risk is allocated and mitigated via credit enhancements, guarantees and political risk insurance — and who is driving demand today, from multilateral developmental banks to family offices, as Asia emerges as a key growth market.

Blended finance uses catalytic capital from public or philanthropic sources to mobilize private investment toward sustainable development &mdash; but how are these vehicles structured, and what enables them to scale? On this week&rsquo;s episode of the ESG Currents podcast, Timothee Jaulin, head of responsible investment development &amp; advocacy at Amundi, joins Shaheen Contractor, senior ESG analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence, to unpack how blended finance works in practice. The discussion breaks down how blended finance vehicles are structured &mdash; from the roles of DFIs and asset managers to tranche design, capital layering and the realities of deployment timelines. They also explore how risk is allocated and mitigated via credit enhancements, guarantees and political risk insurance &mdash; and who is driving demand today, from multilateral developmental banks to family offices, as Asia emerges as a key growth market.

Explaining the Ins and Outs of Blended Finance

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/a5438b03-e4d6-4357-88d4-b3f500d9728b/transcript

The build-out of power-hungry data centers is coinciding with new roadblocks for solar and wind farms under the Trump administration, raising the risk of an electricity supply squeeze. In this episode of Bloomberg Intelligence’s ESG Currents podcast, senior climate analyst Andrew John Stevenson speaks with Simcore Partners’ Dan Lee about the path forward for renewables beyond this year’s subsidy sunset amid rising AI-driven power demand. They discuss project-delay risks and grid-congestion concerns, and how renewables may continue to play a meaningful role in the coming years.

The build-out of power-hungry data centers is coinciding with new roadblocks for solar and wind farms under the Trump administration, raising the risk of an electricity supply squeeze. In this episode of Bloomberg Intelligence&rsquo;s ESG Currents podcast, senior climate analyst Andrew John Stevenson speaks with Simcore Partners&rsquo; Dan Lee about the path forward for renewables beyond this year&rsquo;s subsidy sunset amid rising AI-driven power demand. They discuss project-delay risks and grid-congestion concerns, and how renewables may continue to play a meaningful role in the coming years.

Clean Power’s AI-Driven Demand Opportunity

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/50d0f2a5-e93e-4e2b-9226-b3ed0134d40c/transcript

Bucking Trends: UAE Banks See Sustainable Finance Profit Center

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