The Challenge
Buildings account for 40% of global energy consumption and one-third of global CO2 emissions. Retrofitting existing buildings to meet net-zero standards is one of the most capital-intensive undertakings of the energy transition. At the same time, the quality, availability, and resilience of buildings is becoming increasingly critical, particularly for the communities that are most exposed to the physical and economic impacts of a changing climate.
The scale of the task is shaped by local context: the balance of mature building stock versus new-builds, underlying population and migration dynamics, and the formality of ownership structures, among other factors. Yet broadly, the burden of upgrading the built environment has fallen disproportionately on dispersed individual owners for whom the cost remains prohibitive – an approach that has delivered change too slowly and too unevenly.
We work with a diverse range of partners to design and structure the financing solutions needed to decarbonise and future-proof the built environment. With a track record spanning both mature and emerging markets, we bridge the gap between capital markets and the complex, context-specific realities of built environment investment.
Working with local authorities, cities, regions, and sovereigns to develop bankable built environment projects across multiple housing tenures, including commercial, social, public and residential
Structuring innovative solutions to channel additional finance towards decarbonising and increasing the resilience of the built environment, such as place-based investment vehicles and blended finance solutions.
Working with sovereigns in the Global South on sustainable debt structures, such as thematic bonds, with a built environment lens.
As a multi-faceted sector that requires multi-stakeholder solutions, the built environment requires finance to work in concert with expertise across engineering, architecture, policy, and community engagement – making our cross-sector experience and established partnerships differentiating strengths.
Instruments (e.g., regional blended finance funds) that direct capital towards a defined geography – such as a city or region – rather than financing discrete assets in isolation. By taking a place-based lens, these vehicles can capture broader outcomes and deploy capital more systematically.
Green bonds or other thematic bonds that have built environment components in their use-of-proceeds, aligned with ICMA standards. An emerging area of innovation is also thematic bonds with a climate and social lens that have a significant or sole focus on the built environment.
A mechanism that facilitates pay-as-you-save based financing models linked to individual properties rather than individual property owners or dwellers.
Mechanisms such as energy performance contract structures that monetise future energy savings to finance upfront retrofit costs.
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