Top Green Initiatives of the Finance Sector

According to a recent study, green investing is on the rise, due in part to expectations of high financial returns. Private equity investors are increasingly looking to funds "focused on renewable energy, clean technology and sustainability investments," said the study's authors, New Energy World Network and AltAssets.

The study found that over 90 percent of institutional investors want to have exposure to "green" investments, as said in a press release. What's more, nearly 70 percent of respondents have already made green investments or are considering doing so within the next three years. For example, Wells Fargo has already invested more than $1.85 billion in commercial-scale solar and wind projects across the United States, according to their Environmental Finance Report.

With the ongoing trend of a greener economy, financial firms reeling from financial regulation PR nightmares have an opportunity to clean up their image.

Renewable energy investing is just one of the many ways financial firms have been doing their part to help the environment, save conscience, and most importantly (for them, we can suppose) save money. The growing popularity of eco-friendly investing is just proof that the green movement has taken a firm hold in the financial sector. Saving energy, saving trees, reducing waste ... perhaps these Wall Street execs aren't so bad after all.

Following this report, FierceFinance examined the top green initiatives in the financial services industry. Yet in order for these initiatives to be truly energy efficient, firms must understand their own energy consumption. Once a firm knows how much energy it eats up, it can then create realistic "green" goals that will effectively reduce its carbon footprint.

Will the implementation of financial reform have any impact on green technology?

For more information, scroll through the list below:

• Green Data Centers
  
• Green Financing
  
• Green Accountabilty

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