Swiss Climate Scores on the rise
14.12.2023
The Swiss federal government broke new ground in June 2022 with the launch of the Swiss Climate Scores. Switzerland was the first country in the world to establish a set of transparency criteria for climate-friendly investments. Initial successes are now becoming apparent - and the Federal Council has slightly adapted the criteria.
The Swiss Climate Scores provide institutional and private investors with comparable and meaningful information on the extent to which their financial investments are compatible with international climate goals. In addition, this climate transparency is intended to make the financial centre an international leader in sustainable financial services. The use of the Swiss Climate Scores is voluntary for the sector. The Federal Council recommends that Swiss financial market players apply the Swiss Climate Scores to financial investments and client portfolios where appropriate.
As expected, it was initially smaller and specialised market players that applied the Swiss Climate Scores to some of their products and services. In spring 2023, Globalance was the first Swiss bank to publish the scores for all of its assets under management, including investment funds. In a market study conducted by the industry association Swiss Sustainable Finance in summer 2023, a third of the asset managers surveyed expressed their intention to apply the Swiss Climate Scores in the near future. At the beginning of November 2023, UBS became the first major financial institution to publish Swiss Climate Scores reports for around 60 equity and bond funds domiciled in Switzerland. In 2024, the Federal Department of Finance (FDF) will conduct its first comprehensive study on the status of voluntary introduction.
On 8 December 2023, the Federal Council decided to make a few clarifications to the Swiss Climate Scores at the beginning of 2025 in order to facilitate their implementation for the sector and make them easier for investors to understand. There will now be optional questions on the investment objective in relation to the climate, in which financial institutions can state and justify whether a financial product is climate-friendly or contributes to mitigating climate change. In addition, not only the exposure to fossil fuels will now be reported, but also to renewable energies.