International Workshop on Climate Finance and Sustainability

4-5 December 2025
School of Business, University of Leicester

Keynote speakers

Keynote one: Climate Change and Central Banking, Dr Leonardo Gambacorta

Dr Leonardo Gambacorta is Head of the Emerging Markets Unit at the Bank for International Settlements and a leading global expert on central banking, financial innovation, and macro-financial policy. With more than thirty years of experience, he has shaped international thinking on topics ranging from monetary policy transmission to the impact of AI, fintech, and decentralised finance on the economy. From 2019 to 2024, he headed the BIS work on innovation and the digital economy, leading pioneering research on big tech, fintech, digital currencies and financial inclusion. Before joining the BIS, he held senior positions at the Bank of Italy and was a visiting scholar at the NBER. Dr Gambacorta is a CEPR Research Fellow and has authored more than 100 publications, including work on SME finance, green finance, and AI in banking. His research is widely cited, and he regularly speaks at major global policy fora.

Abstract

Climate change has major implications for central banks through its effects on prices, output, and financial stability. Physical risks and transition risks act as supply-side shocks, altering inflation and growth dynamics and creating new challenges for monetary policy. Understanding these mechanisms is essential for effective policy design. Central banks are strengthening data, models, and analytical tools to assess climate-related risks within their mandates. At the same time, advances in technology provide new possibilities for forward-looking risk assessment. Addressing these challenges calls for international cooperation to enhance data, analytical capacity, and resilience across the global financial system.

Keynote Two: Collateral and Credit, Professor Hans Degryse

Professor Hans Degryse, is a Professor of Finance at KU Leuven’s Department of Accountancy, Finance, and Insurance. A distinguished researcher, he is a fellow at CEPR, CESifo, and several financial research institutions. His expertise lies in financial intermediation, covering both empirical banking and market microstructure. He has published extensively in top-tier journals such as the Journal of Finance and Review of Financial Studies and has presented at leading global finance conferences. He also co-authored Microeconometrics of Banking, a key textbook in the field. Currently, he serves as an associate editor for multiple finance journals and will join the Advisory Scientific Committee of the European Systemic Risk Board in 2024.

Abstract

This paper studies the role of collateral using the euro area corporate credit registry, AnaCredit. We document key facts about the importance, distribution, and composition of collateral, including its presence, types, and values. On average, 70% of credit amounts are collateralized. Real estate and financial assets are the most pledged, while physical movable assets and other intangible assets are less present. In addition, we show that the aggregate collateral value pledged to the banking sector is substantial, driven mainly by real estate in most countries. For the first time, we examine the collateral channel in bank credit using the actual value of individual collateral. By exploiting within-firm and within-bank variations for newly issued secured loans, we find that the elasticity of collateral value to loan commitment amounts is around 0.7 to 0.8. This collateral value elasticity exhibits substantial country and time heterogeneity, which can be explained by legal, financial, and macro conditions.

Round Table Discussions

Round Table One: The Opportunities and Challenges of Linking Finance with Effective Governance in the Context of Climate Change

Moderator: Dr Hao Zheng

Dr Zheng is a Lecturer in Finance at the University of Leicester School of Business and was previously an Assistant Professor at the Research Institute of Economics and Management, Southwestern University of Finance and Economics. Her research covers empirical corporate finance, corporate governance, green finance, and fintech, with a focus on how emerging technologies and environmental challenges influence corporate decision-making and capital markets. Her work has been published in leading international journals, including Journal of Banking & Finance, Journal of International Money and Finance, Journal of Empirical Finance, and Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, and explores topics such as banks’ investments in fintech start-ups, the impact of local labour markets on corporate investment, and the role of financial institutions in advancing sustainable finance.

Round Table Two: The Status of the Economy and Policy Landscape in the UK

Moderator: Professor Patrick Minford CBE

Professor Minford is a British macroeconomist and Professor of Applied Economics at Cardiff Business School, Cardiff University, a position he has held since 1997 following two decades as the Edward Gonner Professor at the University of Liverpool. A prominent figure in the rational expectations revolution, he developed the influential Liverpool Model, which shaped key Conservative economic policies in the 1980s. A committed free-market advocate and vocal Eurosceptic, he later became a leading member of Economists for Brexit, arguing that EU withdrawal would deliver significant economic gains for the UK. His recent work focuses on DSGE models, monetary policy, and indirect inference methods, with continued influence on debates around banking regulation and macroeconomic modelling. Minford was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 1996 for his contributions to economics.

Meet the Editors

• Professor Simona Mateut, Professor of Financial Economics, University of Nottingham.  Editor-in Chief, Journal of Multinational Financial Management
• Professor Kent Matthews, Sir Julian Hodge Professor of Banking and Finance, Cardiff University.  Editor-in-Chief, Open Economics Review
• Professor Keith Pilbeam, Professor of International Economics and Finance, City University of London.  Editor-in-Chief, International Journal of Finance and Economics
• Professor Oleksandr Talavera, Professor of Financial Economics, University of Birmingham.  Co-editor, Economic Modelling
• Professor Akos Valentinyi, Professor of Microeonomics, University of Manchester.  Managing Editor, The Manchester School

This panel session offers an opportunity to engage directly with editors of leading journals in finance and economics.  Editors will discuss the submission process, expectations for academic publishing, and how climate and sustainability themes are shaping research agendas.

Programme