GREENPACT Recap: ESG for Fintech, Fintech for ESG

One of the key topics discussed during the first edition of the GREENPACT European ESG Summit was the development of technologies and how they affect more than just the everyday lives of users. Attention was drawn to the dynamic changes taking place in the financial sector, the growing importance of ESG regulations and the role of fintechs in adapting to these changes.

Competitive edge

- Fintechs have something that large institutions that use fintechs do not have. From the very beginning, they are more agile, the decision-making process is shorter, and they are more efficient. They may not have fruit Thursdays, but they have a stool, a laptop, and they come up with ideas. And suddenly it turns out that this solution, which was often simple and did not require large investments, was impossible to come up with by a large institution that needed it. That's fintech in a nutshell, said Tomasz Braun from Lazarski University.

Regulations as a turning point

Joanna Molik from SollpsisInstitute emphasised the importance of regulations, especially in strategic areas such as technologies: - This is a good moment to consider how regulations, which require such a comprehensive analysis of the entire area of activity of both large companies and smaller fintechs or even start-ups, can be used to make strategic decisions regarding technology.

Agnieszka Maciejowska from Plan be Eco added: We need to realise that today, hardly any companies report, so in reality, the pool of companies that are doing anything in this direction is still very small. What is very important, and I always emphasise this, is that this reporting will affect everyone. These regulations require certain changes, and it is indeed beneficial that they exist. When looking at the business activity in this area, we noticed a significant increase in the first quarter of 2024. When the regulation came into force for the largest companies, smaller ones suddenly began to follow suit, as larger companies attract smaller ones. (...) Technology is always a catalyst for change. When we talk about fintech here, agility, speed and flexibility can help.

Preparation for reporting – market experience

Weronika Wojturska, Senior Associate at PwC, noted that an appropriate approach to reporting is crucial: Due to regulatory pressure, banks and insurers, most of which are issuers, must deal with reporting as efficiently as possible. That is why October is the time when we send out forms prepared for qualitative and quantitative data to companies in the group in order to collect material for ‘shaping’ the report. (...) In the context of our panel today, I am very enthusiastic about how this fourth quarter is now a hot period for fintech companies. I am mainly thinking, of course, about the payments segment, which, from my perspective, has been alert enough over the past year to carry out an exercise with us, which I gratefully call the ESG regulation map, i.e. finding one's way around these reporting regulations.

Weronika Wojturska also added that these are vital steps: Companies that have realised that this reporting horizon is one, two or five years away at this point – and I think this is an incredibly successful business strategy – are conducting a double materiality analysis. (...) What I recommend in a situation where an investor comes and asks, in very straightforward terms, for an assessment of the ESG maturity of the company in which they are investing, is to always ask for such a report to be prepared, taking into account how it is tailored, which I would say is the minimum that a business partner should expect from a company.