Rajeshwar Rao on Financing Sustainable Green Infrastructure

The Deputy Governor of the Reserve Bank of India, Rajeshwar Rao, delivered an inaugural address focusing on catalysing sustainable and green infrastructure financing to achieve net-zero emissions.

• Key announcements: Emphasized the urgent need for a holistic financial ecosystem reconfiguration to support green infrastructure, including endogenous enablers (data flow, MRV, technical expertise) and exogenous enablers (risk capital, blended finance, global funding). Highlighted RBI’s regulatory sandbox supporting sustainable finance innovations and called for enhanced global cooperation and reform of international financial architecture.
• Details: Cited economic costs of climate events ($2 trillion over 2014-2023, $451 billion in 2022-23), investment needs of $3-5 trillion annually until 2050, and a $2.5 trillion annual climate finance gap. Discussed challenges like technology risk, greenwashing, fragmented climate finance, and currency risks. Advocated for innovative financial instruments, digital solutions, and multilateral collaboration to scale finance for green infrastructure.