FS Sustainability

Podcast: Urgent calls for deforestation-free lending

THE GREENER WAY   What role do Australian banks play in deforestation, and how can financial institutions better manage nature-related risks within their lending portfolios?

ASFI launches physical risk inclusion in sustainable finance taxonomy

RIDDHIMA TALWANI   The Australian Sustainable Finance Institute (ASFI) has launched a scoping project to expand Australian Sustainable Finance Taxonomy to climate change adaptation and resilience.

Australia, EU sustainable finance taxonomies show strong overlap: ISS STOXX

RIDDHIMA TALWANI   Strong overlap between Australia's and the European Union's (EU) sustainable finance taxonomies means companies and investors already reporting under the EU Taxonomy may be able to reuse data to assess alignment with the Australian Taxonomy, cutting duplicated effort, according to a new report.

Treasury consults shifting tax debts from victims to abusers

RIDDHIMA TALWANI   Treasury is consulting on extending the powers of the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) to strengthen its response to financial abuse.

Anti-slavery commissioner calls for smarter due diligence for SMEs

RIDDHIMA TALWANI  |    1:24PM   Australian anti-slavery commissioner has proposed to cut out repetitive questionnaires for more targeted modern slavery checks for SMEs.

FSU calls for universal PPL

ELIZA BAVIN   The Finance Sector Union is calling for universal paid parental leave allowing all parents equal access to parental leave regardless of their caring role with full wage replacement.

ARENA launches $30m startup fund

VINNY VUCAGO   The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) has launched a new $30 million funding program to help early-stage technologies from development towards commercialisation.

Government grants $10m to First Nations clean energy projects

RIDDHIMA TALWANI   The government has opened a grant of up to $10 million to help First Nations organisations advance their clean energy projects.

Flexible work fails to follow women into leadership

VINNY VUCAGO   While a greater number of women are advancing into management roles, inflexible leadership positions and unequal caring responsibilities are forcing more women to leave senior positions.

Mining, property fuel Aussie billionaires' wealth: Report

KARREN VERGARA   Australian billionaires' riches are highly concentrated in mining, financial services, technology and property, accounting for 0.7% of the total US$15.1 trillion in global wealth studied by the 2026 Billionaire Census.

Future Fund steps up stewardship, opposes boards on 12% of resolutions

VINNY VUCAGO  |    3:15PM   In FY26, the Future Fund board approved a new stewardship model, participating in 252 Australian shareholder meetings and voting against board recommendations in 12.2% of all resolutions.

Blackstone raises $12bn for fifth energy transition fund

MATTHEW WAI  |    1:29PM   Blackstone has closed the fifth Blackstone Energy Transition Partners fund at $12 billion (US$8.7bn), more than 50% larger than its predecessor vehicle.

ARENA chief executive steps down

RIDDHIMA TALWANI   The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) chief executive Darren Miller will step down from his role and will not be seeking a fourth term when his current term comes to an end in August 2027.

HSBC appoints APAC family, philanthropy lead

MATTHEW WAI   HSBC Private Bank has appointed a regional head of family and philanthropy advisory Asia Pacific, effective September 29, joining from UBS.