Environmental Finance
Full Time// 2nd Semester, Course Code: ΜΕΧΡΗ328
Part Time // 4th Semester, Course Code: ΜΕΧΡΗ-Μ328
Credits: 6
Learning Outcomes
This course constitutes an in-depth analysis of the rapidly developing and evolving field of Environmental Finance. Specifically, upon completion of the course, students will:
- Have specialized knowledge and critical ability on Environmental, Social, and Governmental Risks of businesses and banks (known as ESG risks) and the ESG Rating. As a result, they will be able to assess potential modifications in the ESG institutional framework and the Rating system.
- Be able to offer solutions to practical problems such as continuous alignment with the rapidly changing ESG institutional environment.
- Be able to train specialized (and non-specialized) professional personnel on the economic logic of ‘Green Banking’, ‘Green Investments’, and Carbon Markets.
- Be able to implement in practice the ESG risk-adjusted Portfolio Theory and calculate/evaluate the ESG risk premium.
- Be able to contribute through their professional activity to addressing future challenges in the context of ‘Green Banking’.
Have the ability to study the Sustainability Report of a company or bank and evaluate the degree of adherence to the ESG Criteria and ‘Green Investments’ as defined by the European Commission.
General Competences
- Search for, analysis and synthesis of data and information
- Adapting to new situations
- Decision-making
- Working independently
- Working in an international environment
- Team work
- Working in an interdisciplinary environment
- Working in an international environment
- Production of new research ideas
- Respect for the natural environment
- Production of free, creative and inductive thinking
Course Content
Part A: ESG Ecosystem
- Introduction – ESG criteria and social responsibility
- Current overview of the ESG market
- The European Green Deal
- Corporate sustainability and Sustainability reporting
Part B: ESG Scoring
- ESG indicators
- Data sources
- Scoring system
- Rating system
Part C: “Green Banking”
- An overview of the Environmental-friendly Banking system
- The need and impact of Green Banking (GB)
- Risks and Benefits
- Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
- GB regulatory and policy frameworks
- Future challenges
Part D: The institutional framework
- The big picture
- The European regulatory framework for ESG
- Sustainable finance – Institutional and legal framework
- The EU Classification System or EU taxonomy regulations
Part Ε: Financial investments and Portfolios
- Impact of ESG on asset prices and portfolio returns
- Basic theory of Moder Portfolio Theory (MPT) and CAPM
- ESG risk premium and ESG preferences
- ESG Efficient Frontier
- Empirical evidence
- “Green” and “Social” bonds
Part F: Carbon emissions
- Emissions Trading System (ETS)
- Carbon footprint
Student Performance Evaluation
The evaluation procedure requires from the students to undertake a group project related to the modules of the course which they will present in the last lectures of the course..
Bibliography
Suggested Bibliography
Lecture Slides
Related Academic Journals
- Academic articles and policy papers from the ECB, the IMF, World Bank/IFC, the BIS…
- Handbook of Sustainable Finance, Thierry Roncalli
- Principles of Green Banking , Suborna Barua
Master of Science (M.Sc.) in
«Banking and Finance»
Specialization in
«Banking and Financial Management»