In an article, the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative argued that ocean biodiversity loss and marine ecosystem degradation are becoming financially material for banks and insurers and invited financial institutions to help design One Ocean Finance, a new initiative led by UN agencies and global partners. The proposed vehicle is intended to mobilize and redirect capital toward a sustainable, equitable and resilient ocean economy, with port infrastructure and shipping finance among the initial focus areas. The article sets out a three-horizon approach for the finance sector. In the near term, it points to emerging monitoring tools and existing datasets as inputs for pricing and risk assessment, and notes that slow steaming below 10 knots can reduce fuel consumption by up to 50 to 60 percent while lowering ship-strike risk. Over the medium term, it highlights the High Seas Treaty, climate-driven habitat shifts and rising legal and liability exposure as reasons to update governance frameworks and risk models. It also points to cumulative blue-labelled issuance of USD 5 billion in 2018 to 2021 versus USD 2.2 trillion of green issuance since 2006, and cites an estimated blue-themed investment opportunity of more than USD 3 trillion through 2050. UNEP FI invited financial institutions to take part in a survey on finance sector priorities and to join the co-design process for One Ocean Finance.
United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative2026-06-08
United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative invites banks and insurers to co-design One Ocean Finance for ocean-dependent sectors
The United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative warned that ocean biodiversity loss and marine ecosystem degradation are becoming financially material for banks and insurers and invited financial institutions to help design One Ocean Finance, a UN-led initiative to mobilize capital toward a sustainable ocean economy, initially focusing on port infrastructure and shipping finance. The article outlines a three-horizon approach for integrating ocean risks into pricing, risk models and governance, citing emerging monitoring tools, the High Seas Treaty and rising legal exposure, and contrasts USD 5 billion of blue-labelled issuance in 2018–2021 with an estimated blue investment opportunity of more than USD 3 trillion through 2050.