The World Bank on Monday tapped executives at 15 asset management and financial firms to help boost private investment in emerging markets.
World Bank President Ajay Banga said in a statement during a London climate meeting that the 15 CEOs and chairs making up the Private Sector Investment Lab will be tasked with addressing barriers to private-sector investment in emerging markets.
The Private Sector Investment Lab was officially launched June 22 at a Paris global financing summit, with Mark Carney, U.N. special envoy on climate action and finance, and co-chairman of the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero; and Shriti Vadera, chairwoman of Prudential, named as co-chairs. Noting that it will take trillions of investment dollars annually in emerging markets and developing countries to address climate change and poverty, the World Bank statement said it "is approaching this work with urgency and purpose."
The new group will begin work in the coming weeks, focusing initially on renewable energy and energy infrastructure, with an emphasis on "ideas that can be implemented quickly," the World Bank statement said.
The lab's core group is made up of leaders from AXA, BlackRock, HSBC, Macquarie, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Ninety One, Ping An Group, Royal Philips, Standard Bank, Standard Chartered, Sustainable Energy for All, Tata Sons, Three Cairns Group and Temasek Holdings, Singapore's state investment company that had a portfolio value of S$403 billion ($297 billion) as of March 2022.
Lab members will also be pressed for ideas on improving financing structures and aligning World Bank activity "with the needs and speed of private finance mobilization," Mr. Banga said in the statement, adding that its mission "demands that we build a better bank, but also reimagine partnerships and pull in the private sector."
Ms. Vadera of Prudential said in the announcement that the group should prioritize solutions "that are scalable, speedy, and replicable," with a focus on implementing ones with real impact.
Thomas Buberl, CEO of AXA, said his firm is active in financing such transition projects and happy to work with other players.
