WWF and Themis have together launched a toolkit to help financial institutions reduce exposure to environmental crime.

Launched today at the COP16 nature summit in Cali, Colombia, the new, open access platform is designed to equip firms in better detecting and monitoring illicit activity related to land conversion and deforestation, by highlighting red flags and risks connected with different types of environmental and financial crimes.

It may also help financial institutions strengthen their screening capacity when reviewing existing clients, onboarding new ones, and assessing risks across the financial sector.

Tanya Steele, CEO at WWF UK, said: “Our natural world underpins every aspect of our societies and economies, yet we continue to witness its large-scale destruction – global wildlife populations have fallen on average by 73% since 1970.

“Despite its rapid growth, environmental crime is rarely seen as a serious risk by financial institutions, but it in fact poses significant reputational and material risks to their operations, such as the potential of sanctions for enabling illegal activity. Environmental crime is therefore very much an economic as well as a conservation issue."

According to INTERPOL, environmental financial crime is worth US$110-281bn annually, and is growing by up to 7% every year.

Financial institutions may be exposed to land conversion activity through high-risk commodities, including cattle, soy, palm oil, timber, coffee, cocoa, rubber and minerals. Additionally, environmental crime frequently converges with, and often enables, other financial crimes, including corruption and bribery, fraud, money laundering, tax evasion, drugs, wildlife and human trafficking.

“The new Environmental Crime Financial Toolkit will help institutions understand these risks and take action to mitigate illegal deforestation and land conversion," Steele added. "The private sector, especially financial services, has a unique opportunity to help restore our natural world.”

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