BloombergNEF (BNEF) has published country-level assessments of climate adaptation preparedness, finding that Canada and Singapore are the leaders across the G20 and selected Southeast Asian countries. The research found a positive relationship between risk exposure and adaptation progress, with countries which are the least exposed also the ones that are least prepared to adapt. An exception is the US, which suffers the greatest costs from physical risks but ranked 12th out of the 25 countries assessed. BNEF noted that current analysis focuses on event and asset exposure but does not attempt to quantify resilience.
French and German corporate CEOs have urged President Emmanuel Macron and Chancellor Friedrich Merz to call for “full abolishment” of the EU’s Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD). In a letter drafted at the 2025 Franco-German meeting at Evian last week, outlining five priorities for policymakers, the CEOs said the abandonment of CSDDD would be a “clear and symbolic signal to European and international companies that the governments and the Commission are really engaged to restore competitiveness in Europe”.
Luxembourg has become the first sovereign to publish a defence bond framework, aiming to raise money for investments in “key defence and security areas such as infrastructure, aviation and space capabilities as well as industrial innovation”. The framework forbids expenditure on controversial weapons as well as the provision of weapons or equipment to any countries outside NATO, the EU or Ukraine. The country, which has around 1,100 military personnel and shares its air force with Belgium, said it would issue the first bond under the framework in Q1 next year. It has not sought an external review for the framework, citing military secrecy needs.
Caisse des Dépôts has launched a €1 billion sustainable bond under its new green, social or sustainable financing framework. The five-year note is the ninth ESG bond issued by CDC since 2017 and the first since the French public sector borrower updated its framework in July. The revised framework leverages CDC’s EU taxonomy assessment and has nine green and four social eligible categories.
London CIV has appointed Acadian Asset Management as a second manager on its emerging market equity fund and is adjusting the fund’s investment objective “to include explicit ESG and carbon emissions tests”. Documents for the Kingston Pension Fund note that the processes for adjustments to the £542 million fund ($723 million; €625 million) were set to be completed by the end of September.
The German parliament has referred the country’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) transposition law to its committees on legal affairs, economics and energy, the EU and budgets, in a step which lawyers at Kleeberg said was “intended to bring the legislative procedure to a swift conclusion”. The act is also on the agenda for a meeting of the Federal Council on 17 October.
Six UK foundations have launched a call for investment proposals worth up to £50 million as part of a re-run of the Endowments Investing Challenge, which saw 60 asset managers compete for a £33.5 million impact mandate in 2020. The investment strategy will “prioritise positive social and environmental impact for future generations”, with Friends Provident, the Children’s Society and Joseph Rowntree Foundation among the participating endowments. The deadline for submissions is mid-December with judging to take place in March.
The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) has released its innovative reconciliation action plan (RAP) for October 2025 to September 2027. It builds on APRA’s previous commitments and focuses on four key themes: creating a working environment that increasingly attracts, retains and develops Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employees; broadening the impact of RAP activities throughout APRA’s five offices; developing opportunities for more APRA employees to engage personally with First Nations people, growing their cultural awareness and contributing to reconciliation more directly; and further exploring APRA’s specific role to promote reconciliation within its sphere of influence, in partnership with other financial regulators.
The Investor Group on Climate Change (IGCC) has published reports on investor expectations on resilience as well as climate capability principles for boards. The first report sets out six expectations of companies to support them in managing material climate risks and building resilience – climate governance, executive accountability for physical risk and resilience, adaptation and resilience targets, capital allocation, policy engagement and advocacy, and just adaptation. The second provides principles-based guidance for assessing whether company boards have the capabilities required to navigate the climate transition. The principles have been developed through consultation with company directors, investors and governance specialists, and offer guidance on assessing board composition, training and succession planning, as well as informing corporate engagement and board capability assessments.
The Dubai and Hong Kong financial regulators are due to organise a second joint climate finance conference in November. The event, set to take place in Dubai on 26 November, is the flagship initiative of a partnership between the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) and the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA). The organisers will present a deep dive into the findings of DFSA-HKMA joint research on the role of sustainable debt in scaling up climate finance in emerging markets. Other topics on the agenda include how to green the Asia-Middle East Corridor and using tokenisation to drive global transition.