ESG managers flock back to banking sector following financial crisis fallout

Interest in EU and UK banks

ESG fund managers are bullish on financials again, having shunned the sector for the best part of a decade after the financial crisis.

The financials sector came under intense scrutiny in the wake of the global financial crisis in 2008, which led to thousands of job losses and plunging stockmarkets. Since then, banks have been fined for their actions and regulation has been put in place globally to improve capital adequacy requirements and prevent banks from taking excess risk. The changes have been a two-step process. Firstly, requiring banks to meet regulatory requirements, and then building their culture to show how they are having a positive impact, including job creation, staff training, building sustainability ...