Barclays : How fintechs are supporting the "shift to sustainability"

The power of data

Data - whether that means new sources or new ways of using it - is identified as a key enabler for fintechs harnessing technology to inform environmental standards and design new products.

This can open new routes for personalised customer engagement, remove friction for corporates, and even change the nature of financial markets. Brennan Spellacy, CEO of Patch says: 'The shift to sustainability across industries is an imperative in order to address climate change, so the business opportunity to offer sustainable products in the fintech sphere is incredibly compelling.'

Brennan Spellacy, CEO of Patch.

The shift to sustainability across industries is an imperative in order to address climate change, so the business opportunity to offer sustainable products in the fintech sphere is incredibly compelling.

Brennan Spellacy

CEO of Patch

Patch has developed a solution that generates emissions estimates and automatically orders carbon removal from a network of projects across the globe - but other new technological powers can be used to broaden the understanding of how consumption impacts the climate. Data which identifies customer priorities and investment opportunities will lead to new products, as the importance of environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) grows in both corporate and personal investment.

Josh Levin, Chief Strategy Officer and Co-Founder of 'values-based investor' OpenInvest says the smart use of data can 'bring personalisation to impact investing - more granular detail is needed for impact investing to succeed.'

'There is pressure from consumers who are becoming increasingly environmentally conscious,' says Clare Whitehead, FinTech Platform Lead at Rise. She adds that the upcoming UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow could result in more regulation and mandates for financial institutions - meaning investments and activities align with stricter climate targets.