Zurich is leading the way in sustainability

Revolution

Switzerland is at the forefront of the sustainable finance revolution. The Zurich financial centre plays a key role and has the clear goal of leading the global transformation to sustainable financial services.  

Gartenanlage mit hölzernen Liegestühlen auf Kies, umgeben von Pflanzen. Im Hintergrund gehen zwei Personen auf einem gepflasterten Weg.

  • Paris Climate Agreement

  • Sustainable Development Goals

  • Sustainable finance

  • Transformation

  • Innovation

  • Transparency

Three driving forces behind sustainable finance

Definition

Sustainable finance refers to any form of financial service that systematically integrates environmental, social and governance criteria (ESG) in its business or investment decision-making process, for the long-term benefit of both customers and society as a whole. A sustainable financial centre is tantamount to a financial market that contributes in its entirety to sustainable development and to value added in business, environmental and social terms.

  • Changes in the market

    Customer needs and legal requirements have changed in recent years.

  • Paris Climate Goals

    The Paris Agreement of 2015 stipulates the goal of “making finance flows consistent with a pathway towards low greenhouse gas emissions and climate-resilient development”.

  • UN Sustainable Development Goals

    Sustainability of financial market players and their products and services shall also contribute to achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG).

Sustainable business management is increasingly becoming the focus of companies across all sectors.

Zurich Financial Centre 2023/2024

The Swiss Federal Council sees sustainable finance as a major opportunity and as a relevant competitive factor for the Swiss financial centre. Thus, the goal was formulated whereby the Swiss financial centre is to become a leading global location for sustainable financial services.

Zurich Financial Centre 2023/2024

Achieving global leadership in three points with sustainable finance

Future

The Swiss financial centre has a clear vision: shaping the future of the financial world through sustainable finance. Zurich plays a key role in this regard.

  • Drei Personen sitzen auf einer Bank unter einem großen Baum am Bürkliplatz in Zürich.

    Goal of the Federal Council

    • Switzerland is striving to become the leading global location for sustainable financial services.
    • Sustainable finance is seen as a major opportunity and decisive competitive factor.
  • Eine blau-weisses Tram fährt beim Park des Bürkliplatz in Zürich vorbei.

    Zurich’s key role

    • As a leading European financial centre and global innovation leader, Zurich is supporting the transition to a sustainable financial system and is thus driving forward the Paris climate goals, the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the new market requirements.
    • The Zurich financial centre has positioned itself as a catalyst for innovative financial innovations, fuelled by its sustainable financial ecosystem.
  • Drei Personen sitzen auf einer Bank unter einem großen Baum am Bürkliplatz in Zürich.

    Practical implementation in Zurich

    • A majority of traditional companies in Zurich are already actively implementing environmental, social and governance factors in their overall strategies.
    • Zurich is home to more than half of Switzerland’s sustainable investment volume of 1,982.7 billion CHF (2021).

This is what the Federal Council and the largest companies in Switzerland proactively do

Sustainable

Deeds instead of words – the Federal Council is specifically implementing sustainable financial policy with four areas for action. The results are exciting and transformative sustainability initiatives. 

The four areas for action of the Federal Council are:

  1. Sustainability data from the overall economy
  2. Transparency in the financial sector
  3. Impact investments and green bonds
  4. Pricing pollution

Specific examples of sustainability initiatives in Switzerland or with support of the largest Swiss corporations:

  • Principles for Responsible Investment PRI
  • Principles for Responsible Banking PRB
  • Net zero alliances, including Net Zero Banking Alliance NZBA, Net Zero Asset Managers NZAM, Net Zero Insurance Alliance NZIA
  • Green Fintech Network
  • Swiss Climate Foundation
  • Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) Switzerland

The goal of these initiatives and alliances is to hold the signatory companies accountable, in order to drive forward the transformation to a more sustainable economy.

This is how sustainably Switzerland conducts economic activities by regions

Future

In 2023, the volume of sustainable investments in Switzerland amounted to 1,660 billion Swiss francs. Slightly more than half of that amount is attributable to finance companies based in the Zurich region.

Source: Swiss Sustainable Finance

Sustainable investments are experiencing strong growth

Moving ahead

Sustainability-related investments have experienced strong growth in recent years. In 2021, they reached an interim all-time high of just under 800 billion Swiss francs.

Source: Swiss Sustainable Finance

The most sustainable funds in Switzerland

Investments

The volume of sustainable funds in Switzerland per end of 2023 totalled approximately 700 billion Swiss francs and thus accounted for more than half of the overall Swiss fund market (1,371 billion CHF).

Source: Swiss Sustainable Finance

Service providers in the domain of sustainable finance

Education

There are numerous educational institutions in Switzerland that offer programmes and courses centred on sustainable finance.

  • Universities – the University of Zurich offers courses centred on sustainable finance.
  • Universities of applied sciences – the Zurich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW) offers a specialisation in sustainable finance.
  • Swiss Finance Institute – the Swiss Finance Institute is committed to promoting cutting-edge research, continuing education and knowledge transfer in the domain of sustainable finances and offers specialised courses in that field.
  • International programmes – the German Frankfurt School of Finance & Management offers a part-time master’s degree course in sustainable finance that is also open to international students.
  • Online platforms – platforms such as Coursera, edX or LinkedIn Learning offer online courses focused on sustainable finance.

Additional information: Education at the Zurich Financial Centre

The following three attributes are what make a financial product sustainable

Innovative

In today’s world where sustainable solutions are more and more called for, the positive impact of products and services is gaining traction and significance. But how can this positive impact be measured?

Positive impact

If products and services are to contribute to a sustainable future, they must have positive impacts. These impacts must be measurable by means of defined ESG indicators:

  • Environment (E) encompasses topics including environmental pollution, greenhouse gas emissions and energy efficiency (corporate environment).
  • Social (S) includes aspects such as occupational safety, diversity and social commitment (corporate social responsibility).
  • Governance (G) refers to sustainable corporate management and includes corporate values and control & monitoring processes (corporate governance).

Transparency

Transparent disclosure on how sustainably work is performed enables customers and stakeholders to check if formulated goals are being achieved.

Marketability

If products and services are to achieve a sustainable impact, they must be available and applicable in the marketplace.

The Zurich financial centre serves as a connecting link

Faciliator

A survey within the scope of the Zurich Financial Centre study illustrates the presence and significance of innovative and sustainable approaches in the field of sustainable finance. That said –and notwithstanding their relevance for the future– there are also challenges. The Canton of Zurich and the City of Zurich can connect the various stakeholders with each other and thus provide a basis for conducting business activities successfully. 

What does the facilitator role of the Canton and City of Zurich entail?

  • The cantonal Division of Business and Economic Development has set up the “Innovation Zurich” platform for networking and connecting companies and organisations within the innovation environment.
  • As founding partners of Swiss Sustainable Finance, the Canton and the City of Zurich are committed to promoting sustainable financial services.
  • The City of Zurich organises an annual event aimed at promoting dialogue between representatives of the Zurich financial centre, the city, the canton, the Confederation and the Swiss National Bank (SNB).

Further information

Downloads & links

More Zurich Financial Centre

Fintech

The Zurich financial centre is one of the leading fintech hubs worldwide. This is where tradition and high-tech come together, established banks meet innovative start-ups, while the financial landscape is being reshaped by blockchain and cryptocurrencies.

Education

The Zurich financial centre is dynamic, innovative and globally connected. This is what you can expect to find in Zurich: a wide range of training, education and continuing education opportunities, an attractive market environment, and forward-looking career paths.