NSE IFSC launches international sustainability platform at GIFT City

New Delhi: NSE IFSC Ltd, a subsidiary of National Stock Exchange (NSE), on Friday announced the launch of an international sustainability platform, at Gujarat's GIFT City, which is expected to get operationalised in the second half of the year.

This is a first of its kind ESG (environmental, social and governance) platform in India, NSE IFSC said in a statement. The platform will facilitate listing and trading a variety of sustainability products including green bonds, voluntary carbon, sustainable bonds, green real estate investment trusts (REITs), green equity, among others and channelize the flow of sustainable finance to India and other markets. Locating it in GIFT City will facilitate international investors to participate in ESG transitions in India and other markets.

"It is expected to get operationalised in the second half of 2022 subject to regulatory approvals," NSE IFSC said. Issuers listing on the platform will be expected to meet a minimum set of ESG standards, besides complying with the specific criteria defined by NSE IFSC for the sustainability products which they may wish to list. The platform expects a range of corporate bodies, including large corporates, small and medium enterprises and startups, as well as non-profits and social impact organizations, and government and quasi-government organizations to leverage and attract capital to achieve their climate and ESG goals. The sustainability platform will use Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) or Blockchain to ensure integrity, speed, tracking and traceability of transactions.

"We are committed to establish the international sustainability platform at GIFT City. Such a trading platform can play an important role in channelizing capital that will be required in ESG and sustainability transitions across the globe," Vikram Limaye, Managing Director and CEO at NSE said. According to him, the platform will encourage the issuance of new sustainability-linked financial products by a diverse group of organizations from around the world, including corporates, governments and social enterprises, and this represents an important response to the challenge of resolving global environmental issues like climate change.

The move would encourage responsible conduct of business and enable corporates, government bodies and social enterprises to raise sustainable finance from such a platform, Injeti Srinivas, Chairman, IFSCA said. ECube Investment Advisors, an ESG-focused platform and Chainflux, a Blockchain products firm are working closely with NSE IFSC. NSE IFSC is located at Gujarat's GIFT City, which is India's first International Financial Services Centre (IFSC).