CFA Institute Research and Policy Center (RPC) is a finance research hub turning investment research into insights that strengthen capital markets, advance ethics and improve investor outcomes. RPC publishes policy analysis, research reports and industry perspectives for investment professionals, regulators and policymakers, grounded in CFA Institute expertise and market trends.

This month’s sustainable finance roundup traces the shift from ambition to enforcement, as climate and nature risks become financial, regulatory and legal realities. It covers Australia’s environmental law reforms, the embedding of climate and nature risk through prudential supervision, disclosure and shareholder pressure, and insurer warnings on the limits of insurability. It also highlights how markets are responding to deforestation and biodiversity risk, and how litigation and regulation are reshaping governance and long-term financial resilience.

This guide outlines how investors can integrate physical climate risks into listed equity and debt portfolios, strengthen portfolio resilience, and mobilise capital for adaptation through asset allocation, due diligence, engagement, and collaboration across policy, finance and the real economy.

ICMA’s DLT Bonds Reference Guide outlines practical considerations across the lifecycle of distributed ledger technology-based debt securities. It addresses legal, regulatory, operational, trading, settlement and investor issues, aiming to support consistent market practice and wider adoption while reducing fragmentation in global bond markets.

This guide outlines how artificial intelligence intersects with environmental, social and governance practice, highlighting opportunities to scale ESG outcomes alongside material risks. It introduces responsible AI principles, regulatory context, assessment frameworks and practical examples to support informed, ethical AI adoption by ESG practitioners.

This study compares eight biodiversity impact assessment tools used by investors. It finds low consistency in company rankings due to non-standardised methods, weak transparency and limited validation, concluding that reliance on single tools risks mispricing nature-related financial risk and calling for improved disclosures and spatially explicit approaches.

This report synthesises interviews with global thinkers to diagnose structural flaws in dominant economic systems. It argues that extractive capitalism, growth imperatives, inequality and ecological overshoot underpin a planetary predicament, and frames the challenge as navigation towards regenerative, responsibility-based economies rather than problem-solving.

This study utilises comprehensive Hungarian firm-level data to stress-test the economy and banking system against carbon pricing shocks. While direct impacts at €45/t appear minimal, supply chain contagion significantly amplifies losses, potentially by 4000% if essential inputs cannot be substituted. This highlights critical risks in systemic supply network dependencies.

The report analyses how generative AI reshapes information warfare by enabling scalable manipulation, behavioural influence and dual-use knowledge diffusion. It highlights heightened risks to civilians, military operations and international law, stressing gaps in protection and the need for anticipatory, whole-of-society resilience strategies.

The report outlines emerging organisational practices for AI impact assessments, highlighting common process steps, information gathering challenges, evolving risk-assessment methods, and difficulties evaluating mitigation effectiveness. It notes increasing cross-functional governance, reliance on third-party transparency, and the need for stronger metrics, education, and executive support.

This case study explains how the Royal Bank of Canada piloted and expanded a financial access programme for survivors of human trafficking, using a risk based approach to customer identification and verification. It shows how regulated banks can advance financial inclusion while meeting compliance requirements through partnerships with support organisations.

This case study shows how Scotiabank partnered with survivor support organisations to improve financial access for modern slavery survivors. By piloting a simplified, risk-based customer due diligence approach, the bank balanced regulatory compliance with social inclusion, demonstrating a practical model for inclusive banking within existing know-your-customer (KYC) frameworks.

The report argues that climate justice is integral to fiduciary duty, as climate and inequality risks threaten long-term value. It outlines definitions, system-level investment frameworks, and practical tools that help investors manage systemic risks and support a just low-carbon transition.

This article highlights the major climate impact of livestock and explains why the absence of clear roadmaps, metrics, and financing strategies has left the sector far behind the energy transition. It proposes policy reforms, mitigation hierarchies, and justice-centered pathways to unlock effective and equitable change.

This report outlines how climate and nature risks threaten the Earth system that underpins economies and societies. It proposes a Planetary Solvency framework, using risk-led assessment principles to inform policymakers of escalating systemic risks, tipping points and mitigation needs, emphasising the urgency of realistic global risk management to avoid severe disruption.

This month’s sustainable-finance roundup highlights faster transition momentum, rising physical risks and a tightening focus on accountability. COP30 reinforced expectations for stronger 2035 targets, while national actions underscored diverging paths toward decarbonisation. Markets continued shifting toward clean energy and resilience, and new science made climate harms more visible. With regulatory scrutiny and litigation increasing, transition credibility and real-economy resilience are becoming core drivers of financial risk and investment decisions.