Montreal, May 19th, 2022 - As part of the 2nd edition of the Sustainable Finance Summit, Finance Montreal and Finance for Tomorrow, branch of Paris Europlace, are launching today a Quebec-France Corridor of sustainable finance, with the objective to stimulate the strategic engagement of the two financial centres. This initiative, which aims to strengthen cooperation between Quebec and French players in sustainable finance, specifically by pooling expertise and best practices, is the most recent signal of the boom in sustainable finance in Quebec. The financial ecosystems of Quebec and France are thus acquiring a common ambition and the necessary tools to connect two centres of excellence in sustainable finance that are in full expansion, creating new opportunities for companies and investors on both sides of the Atlantic.
“The establishment of the Quebec-France Corridor of sustainable finance is a mutual recognition of Quebec and French expertise in sustainable finance. This initiative will allow us to pool our knowledge on crucial issues in sustainable finance to propel the positioning of Montreal and Quebec among the major financial centres at the forefront of international sustainable finance”, says Jacques Deforges, CEO of Finance Montreal.
“Finance for Tomorrow is delighted to partner with Finance Montréal to consolidate relations between the two financial centres and thus create a true transatlantic alliance. This partnership reflects the ambition that we have had since 2018 with the FC4S (Network of international financial centres around sustainability issues) to bring together players from international financial centres and share best practices to make sustainable finance mainstream finance”, says Pauline Becquey, CEO of Finance For Tomorrow.
A booming sector
In terms of sustainable finance, the Quebec and French financial ecosystems have positioned themselves as leaders. Spearheading the sector in the country, Montréal will host the North American offices of the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB), a new international organization responsible for developing standards for the presentation of uniform and comparable information on environmental, social, and governance issues. Finance Montréal is also announcing today that 9 financial institutions have joined the initial organizations to sign or support the Declaration of the Quebec financial centre for sustainable finance with the objective of strengthening the ecosystem of sustainable finance to make Québec a world-class centre of excellence. These organizations now represent assets under management of more than $1,350 billion.
The most recent recognition of Montreal's expertise in sustainable finance, the Quebec-France Corridor of sustainable finance aims to stimulate the strategic engagement of the two financial centres by promoting the sharing of good practices and experience to support the proliferation of these two centres of excellence in sustainable finance. This rapprochement with French financial players is most timely, as they are among the pioneers in terms of sustainability reporting, climate risk assessment, transparency and financial innovation.
This new initiative, which establishes Finance Montréal and Finance for Tomorrow as privileged interlocutors in terms of sustainable finance for Quebec and France, is the first step in the development of a common roadmap for the two financial centres that will make sustainable finance a key element in the development and influence of the financial industry in Quebec.
Promoting Quebec and French expertise
The strategic engagement of the two financial centres is already in full swing. Finance Montreal notably participates in the Finance for Tomorrow working group dedicated to impact finance. This involvement brings clarity and convergence on definitions and key concepts such as the just transition and impact finance and allows the pooling of expertise and good practices in sustainable finance on both sides of the Atlantic.
In addition, Finance for Tomorrow and Finance Montreal are working closely together as part of the Parcours Numérique Québec-France. This support program for the export of financial technology (FinTech) start-ups between Quebec and France creates new opportunities for companies and investors on both sides of the Atlantic by allowing entrepreneurs to immerse themselves in overseas markets.
Finance Montreal is also an institutional partner of the Challenge FinTech for Tomorrow, organized by Finance for Tomorrow: a call for projects whose objective is to identify, support and promote innovative solutions to facilitate the financing of the ecological transition and reduce the impact on the environment of the financial sector. By offering a place in its Station FinTech incubator, Finance Montreal allows the winning start-up in the international section to immerse itself in a financial centre that plays a leading role in sustainable finance.
A collaboration welcomed by financial actors on both sides of the Atlantic
The establishment of the Corridor lays the foundations for a continuous and ambitious dialogue between financial players and companies in the two financial centres, promoting the growth of sustainable finance as a key element in the development and influence of the financial industry in Quebec. This strategic engagement is viewed favorably by several players in the financial community active on both sides of the Atlantic.
“I am delighted with the creation of this Corridor, which will further strengthen the links we are forging with our French partners in sustainable finance. Such international links make it possible to accelerate innovation, to jointly define the highest standards and to resolve issues that go beyond the borders of our countries alone.” says Geneviève Morin, President and CEO of Fondaction.
To learn more about the Sustainable Finance Summit, visit www.sommet-financedurable.com/en/
About Finance Montréal
Founded in 2010, Finance Montréal, the financial cluster in Quebec, is at the heart of the development and promotion of the Quebec financial services industry and its international positioning as a growing, competitive, attractive and innovative world-class financial center. The organization also focuses on fintech and innovation, sustainable finance and talent development. Hub of the financial community, Finance Montréal mobilizes its forces around these poles, much like the community it built around its Montréal FinTech Station. To learn more about Finance Montréal, visit www.finance-montreal.com.
About Finance for Tomorrow
Finance for Tomorrow is the branch of Paris EUROPLACE launched in June 2017 with the aim of making green and sustainable finance a driving force in the development of the Paris marketplace, to position it as a benchmark financial centre on these issues. The 100+ members of Finance for Tomorrow commit to a common charter to help redirect financial flows towards a low-carbon, nature-friendly and inclusive economy, in line with the Paris Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the UN.
Media contact:
Maxime Perrault
COPTICOM, Strategy & Public Relations
mperrault@copticom.ca
(819) 208-0989
Marie-Eve St-Onge
COPTICOM, Strategy & Public Relations
mestonge@copticom.ca
(514) 601-5504
