By Daniel Hunter
The Scottish government will host the inaugural Global Ethical Finance Forum (GEFF) in September.
Organised by Middle East Global Advisors (MEGA), the GEFF aspires to bridge the various disconnected segments in the ethical finance industry which are currently separated by perceptions or geographical differences. The long-term aim for the forum is to support the development of common practices and ultimately promote the adoption of global standards for the industry.
Taking place alongside GEFF is the launch of the Responsible Finance Institute (RFI). The RFI aims to provide a platform and engage the industry in a dialogue which will result in increased opportunities for convergence and collaboration.
Speaking ahead of the forum, Sarah Marten, CEO of the RFI, said: “GEFF's objectives are to harness the collective strengths of the various forms of responsible finance and investing (inclusive of Islamic finance) that together comprise more than US$11 trillion dollars.”
Sarah added that global sustainable development challenges such as climate change and poverty line can hardly be addressed without responsible finance that integrates social, environmental and governance concerns into the financing and investment decision making of financial institutions.
“RFI is proud to partner with GEFF in this important event and looks forward to working towards developing and further expanding responsible finance, inclusive of Islamic finance.”
GEFF 2015 is particularly targeted at institutional investors, asset owners, policymakers, academics and other stakeholders within the Islamic finance; environmental, social & governance (ESG); and socially responsible investing (SRI) segments.
