FRANKFURT: The European Central Bank will take greater account of climate change in its core policy decisions, in the latest move by one of the world's biggest central banks to curb carbon emissions.
Europe's most powerful financial authority made its announcement before the launch next week of a package of measures by the European Union, which is striving to lead the world in greening the economy.
ECB President Christine Lagarde, who has spoken passionately about the need for climate action and shared stages with green campaigners such as David Attenborough, has made it a priority to establish the bank's role in the field.
Setting out interventions that will make it substantially more forward-leaning on climate than the U.S. Federal Reserve, the ECB said on Thursday that climate change would be a factor in policy relating to disclosure of financial information, risk assessment, collateral and corporate sector asset purchases.
"The ECB will adjust the framework guiding the allocation of corporate bond purchases to incorporate climate change criteria, in line with its mandate," it said in a statement.
"These will include the alignment of issuers with, at a minimum, EU legislation implementing the Paris agreement through climate change-related metrics or commitments of the issuers to such goals," the central bank added.
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