On October 28, 2016, the European Commission published a decision creating a high-level expert group (“HLEG“) on sustainable finance in the context of the capital markets union (“CMU“).

The group is to have the following tasks:

• Submitting to the Commission a set of policy recommendations that set out the scale and dimensions of the challenges and opportunities that sustainable finance presents, and recommending a comprehensive program of reforms to the EU financial policy framework. The group is to explore operational steps that financial institutions and supervisors should take to protect the stability of the financial system from environmental, social and governance risks. The accompanying press release suggests that this policy road map is due to be completed by the end of 2017.
• Engaging in structured communication and advocacy towards interested parties about its work on sustainable finance.

Up to 20 senior experts will make up the group. They will commence work in January 2017. A call for applications for the selection of members of the group has been launched and will close on November 25, 2016.