Positive momentum was the overriding impression coming out of the Nature Finance UK conference 2025, produced by the Ecosystems Knowledge Network, on Tuesday 25 November in London at the Savoy.

One example of this was Clyde & Co partnering with Nature Broking with a pioneering balance sheet treatment that transforms sustainability investment from cost to asset. Capitalising the firm’s investment as a balance sheet asset rather than a profit-and-loss
expense, Nature Broking is set to manage a strategic portfolio for a multi-year carbon removal credit procurement programme. It has secured supply to be delivered in 2038 for residual emissions.

The five-year partnership addresses 10,000 tonnes per year of projected residual emissions from 2038. Positioning Clyde & Co ahead of emerging regulatory requirements, the deal anticipates the Science Based Targets initiative’s (SBTi) recently updated standards.

Paddy Linighan, chief sustainability officer at Clyde & Co, said: “This represents a sophisticated business case for long-term climate action that aligns financial prudence with environmental integrity. By treating our net-zero commitment as what it is,
a future liability requiring strategic capital allocation, we can invest proactively rather than reactively”.

Hot on the heels of this announcement, Treeconomy, the earthtech company focused on building trust and transparency in the natural capital market, announced a strategic partnership with Great Yellow, a leader in nature finance and land-use transformation.
This collaboration marks another major natural capital organisation joining forces to elevate the integrity of the market, as both organisations commit to further upgrading and evolving Treeconomy’s satellite-powered due diligence tools.

The partnership was made possible by the UK Space Agency’s, Unlocking Space for Business programme, which is funding Treeconomy’s work to commercialise geospatial innovations with leading investors and project developers.

Great Yellow is building upon the initial partnership established with Rebalance Earth. By integrating Treeconomy’s advanced Measurement, Reporting, and Verification (dMRV) technology into its investment process, Great Yellow is reinforcing its mission to
transform how businesses invest in and restore nature.

The opening panel of the day was chaired by Andy Creak of Kana Earth, who was joined by Robert Gardener of Rebalance Earth, Will Johnson of Gresham House, Fraser Green of Aberdeen Investments, and Samriddhi Sharma of Fulcrum Asset Management.

Creak asserted that “nature is green gold”, and that according to the ten-year Sharpe ratio gold is rated at .50 and nature at .79, with the higher the number the better. Johnson stated they were interested in positive impact and positive returns, detailing
how nature also allows for a defensive lens, citing new olive production techniques in the Mediterranean that have enabled resilient farming in the face of climate change.

Green agreed, citing “continuous cover forestry” that sequesters carbon, preserves soil, stores water, and brings native woodlands back to the fore, supporting more sustainable construction. Gardner went on to describe nature as critical infrastructure,
saying 2% of the five trillion pension industry needs to be allocated to nature with the cashflow from ecosystem services paying back the investors and their need for a market IRR.

I went on to speak with Triodos Bank UK’s nature, food, and resources relationship manager,Laura Rumph regarding their new UK-based nature project financing models, including combining BNG and woodland carbon revenue streams, and she shared progress toward
Triodos’ €500 million nature-based solutions commitment by 2030.

Rumph made it clear that their customers find nature-based investing very tangible and impactful. Triodos made a landmark investment with Oxygen conservation in 2023 and have done their first “debt and blended finance package” with
Avon Needs Trees alongside DEFRA. Speaking of the challenges in such projects, Rumph addressed the capital intensive “cost of change”. While grants sometimes address this, they are not always a certainty.

She also highlighted the challenge of trees maintenance after planting. Carbon and Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) credits have to be managed for 100 years and 30 years respectively, Triodos use specialist advice to ensure maintenance cash is kept aside. The
bank is repaid when the credits are sold, and carbon is repaid around 10 years with biodiversity circa seven.

To mitigate against reputation risk, Rumph said Triodos ensures that monitoring reporting verification is done to the highest standard. Treeconomy is the sort of solution they like to see being used. Rumph sees their role to build momentum, push boundaries,
and then share best practice with those that follow. Stacking revenue streams is crucial, she believes, from energy projects, tourism, carbon sequestration, and such. But risk aversion and access to capital are inhibitors. What was novel is now normal – in
so many areas, such as wind and solar, and Triodos are pioneering the creation of nature as an asset to be the new normal.

Source link