Financial Reform, Institutional Investors and Sustainable Development : A Review of Current Policy Initiatives and Proposals for Further Progress

Policy reform is critical for aligning institutional investors with sustainable development. Relying on voluntary action and enlightened self-interest by investors will not be sufficient to achieve sustainability goals. Proactive policy intervention is needed both in the real economy and within the financial system. Sustainability demands a systemic, dynamic policy approach. Previous interventions to promote the environmental and social dimension of investment have focused principally on disclosure of policies and formal statements of legal duties. They have largely taken fundamental features of the design and operation of the financial system as given. The need now is for a more systemic and dynamic approach – an approach that builds institutional investment frameworks, investment institutions and an investment culture with sustainability at their core. Policy interventions that directly address institutional investors also need to be set in the broader context of action relating to the financial system as a whole – including financialization and accounting standards.