ESG criteria investment: The opportunity for Greek companies

Enterprise Greece and EUROBANK organized an online event entitled “Investing with ESG criteria: A great opportunity for the expansion of Greek companies” on Wednesday, December 1, 2021.

In the post-pandemic environment and under the weight of strong challenges, such as climate change and the demand of consumers and investors for sustainable, ethical business practices, the rapid transformation of the Greek economy and businesses, through the green and digital transition, to a new productive model, based on ESG standards, is a central priority. The purpose of the event was to inform Greek companies about the opportunities arising from the adoption of environmental, social and governance standards (ESG) to attract investment capital, expand them into international markets and strengthen their competitiveness. path towards the goal of sustainable development.

The event was opened with greetings by the Deputy CEO of EUROBANK and head of Corporate & Investment Banking, Mr. Konstantinos Vassilios and the CEO of Enterprise Greece, Mr. George Filiopoulos. Speeches were made by the Secretary General of International Economic Relations and Extroversion of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and President of Enterprise Greece, Mr. Giannis Smyrlis, Mr. John Carroll, Head of International & Transactional Banking in Santander UK and Mr. Michalis Spanos, CEO of Global Sustain . This was followed by a discussion organized in two panels. The Secretary General for Energy and Mineral Raw Materials of the Ministry of Environment and Energy, Ms. Alexandra Sdoukou, Mr. Spyros Kouvelis, Director of the EPLO Institute for Sustainable Development and Ms. Elena Athousaki, Head of ESG, were placed in the green transition section. & Climate Change in the Motor Oil Group. In the panel for the digital transition, placements of Messrs. Christou Dimas, Deputy Minister of Research & Technology of the Ministry of Development and Investment, Mina Hanioti, Business Innovation & Digital Transformation Director at the Mytilineos and Chrysostomos Kavounidis Group, Managing Director at the Boston Consulting Group. Ms. Svetlana Belacka, Data Analyst at EMEA Bloomberg, presented a Bloomberg survey on “What is next for FDI post – pandemic”. The online event, which was attended by more than 382 business representatives, was coordinated by the journalist, Founder & CEO of NOTICE – Content and Services, Mr. Nektarios Notis.

Welcoming the event, the Deputy CEO of EUROBANK and Head of Corporate & Investment Banking, Mr. Konstantinos Vassileiou, said: “By investing strategically in modern digital platforms, such as the Digital Academy for Business, Exportgate and the Trade Club Alliance, we support in practice the extroversion of Greek entrepreneurship, contributing to the adoption and promotion of innovative practices that promote the transition to a green economy.”

The CEO of Enterprise Greece, Mr. George Filiopoulos, pointed out: “In recent years, ESG standards have been an important criterion in business decision-making worldwide. The need to adopt ESG standards has become imperative in the last two years, as people face an urgent need. “Growing climate change. Now, in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, there is a renewed international commitment to green, sustainable and inclusive growth.”

The Deputy Minister of Research & Technology of the Ministry of Development and Investment, Mr. Christos Dimas, stated: “The management of the climate crisis requires the adoption of an economically sustainable development model that is in line with the” ESG priorities “. where the Research Bodies supervised by the Ministry of Development and Investment are significantly supported and deal effectively with tackling and mitigating climate change. “.

The Secretary General of International Economic Relations and Extroversion of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and President of Enterprise Greece, Mr. Giannis Smyrlis, stated: “The Greek economy is being transformed. Our goal is to make Greece more competitive and business-friendly, by reducing their tax burden, as well as by parallelizing the digital transformation of Greece, through initiatives such as the creation of a national 5G network, which will be one of the first in the world. ”

The Secretary General of Energy and Mineral Raw Materials, Ms. Alexandra Sdoukou, in a recorded intervention said: “The ESG criteria now concern the Greek” business “very strongly as investors now turn to investments that, in addition to a healthy return on investment, have ESG criteria help make this sign clear, measurable and provable. our ambitious goals of protecting the environment and increasing social well-being “.