CEE Sustainable Finance Summit

The 2025 CEE Sustainable Finance Summit will take place in central Prague and will launch Prague Climate Week

In 2025, the Summit will act as the opening of the Prague Climate Week with a special high-level opening ceremony at the Lobkowicz Palace. The Summit will focus on EU competitiveness: the road to sustainable competitiveness. We will explore the solutions for solving the EU’s productivity crisis and addressing the risks of industrial decline, stagflation, and lack of innovation.

The nominations for the 2025 CEE Sustainability Leadership Awards are now open.

To obtain more information, to become a partner for the Summit and the Prague Climate Week, and receive draft agenda, please get in touch via the button below!

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Download the #CEESummit2024 Report

The comprehensive event report from the 2024 CEE Summit is now available for download.
It includes key highlights, summaries of presentations, panel discussions, and valuable insights from our distinguished speakers.
We hope it will be a useful resource for your professional endeavours.

Download report

Rewatch the recorded #CEESummit2024
sessions on Youtube!

Recordings of each panel discussions can be found also in the Agenda below.

Watch here

The CEE Sustainable Finance Summit is an invite-only event for practitioners and market participants. The focus of the Summit is sustainability in practice: implementation of sustainable finance and sustainability-related policies and regulation for business and financial institutions, best or early market practices, changes in strategy and adjustments to financing conditions. The public agenda is combined with an invite-only roundtable programme for deep dives into different topics, allowing for structured policymaker interaction with market participants. We believe that the Summit’s high quality content and curated audience allows for a unique set up to drive positive change, connect people, and help create solutions.

The Summit has now reached its full capacity. We are very excited to welcome our guests starting Sunday for a VIP dinner!

WATCH LIVE STREAM BELOW

27 MAY
Monday

SUSTAINABILITY IN FINANCE
Sustainability in finance: greening finance or financing green

09:00-09:10 | Welcome remarks
Linda Zeilina, CEO & Founder, ISFC & Julian Toth, Director & Founder, CzhechSIF
09:10 – 09:30 | First opening keynote speech
Kyriacos Kakouris, Vice President, European Investment Bank
09:30 - 09:40 | Second keynote speech
Munir Nanji, Central Europe and Ireland Sub-Cluster and Banking Head, Citi bank
09:40 – 10:30 | Conversation with the audience: European disclosure regime and the EU Green Deal – are we all set for an effective transition?
A discussion about the future use of disclosures in business, finance and public funding. Exploration of key implementation and interpretation challenges, and how to overcome them, plus a conversation about whether the non-financial disclosures will redirect capital flows- or how to achieve this in practice.
Chair of the session: Linda Zeilina, CEO, ISFC & EU Sustainable Finance Platform member
Speakers:
Martin Špolc, Head of Sustainable Finance Unit, DG FISMA, European Commission
Ota Melcher, Acting Director, Transformation of the Czech Economy Unit, Ministry of Finance
Andreas Rajchl, Head of Department for Green Finance and Sustainable Economy at Austrian Federal Ministry for Climate Action & Environment
Eila Kreivi, Member, Board of Directors, Finnerva & former Chief Sustainable Finance Advisor, EIB
Petr Polach, Head of Corporate Finance, Raiffeisen Bank International AG
Tomasz Niewola, Head of Structured Finance, mBank
11:00 – 11:20 | Keynote remarks
Radek Laštovička, Senior Manager, Financial Services Credit Risk Management and ESG, EY
11:20– 11:40 | TED-style talk
Petr Fiala, Head of Trade Finance & Factoring and ESG, Raiffeisen
11:40 – 12:30 | Conversation with the audience: EU Green Deal and the European economy: the EU taxonomy – early market practices and insights from the use of the EU Taxonomy
Chair of the session: Julian Toth, COO, ISFC & Director, CzechSIF
Speakers:
Theodor Cojoianu, Professor, University of Edinburgh & Member, EU Platform on Sustainable Finance
Elodie Feller, Global Policy Lead, UNEP FI
Alice Machova, Partner, EY
Martin Račan, CEZ Group expert for taxonomy, CEZ Group
13:30 – 13:50 | Presentation: Inevitable Policy Response & decarbonisation pathways
Jakob Thomä, CEO, Theia Finance Labs
13:50 – 14:10 | TED-style talk: What on Earth is Degrowth? And why do we need it?
Alexandra Köves, Associate Professor, Corvinus University of Budapest
14:10 – 15:00 | Short discussion: The future of investing: ESG in practice and the landscape of investing In Europe and the CEE region
Chair of the session: Simon Mundy, Moral Money editor, The Financial Times
Speakers:
Sergio Henrique Collaço de Carvalho, Partner, PlanetFirst Partners
Lucia Cerchlan, Co-Founder, LUMUS Investment Collective
Michal Košina, Senior Mandate Manager, EIF
Paula Singliarova, Co-founder & Director, Slovak Sustainable Investment Forum
15:40 – 16:00 | TED-style talk: The green bond and sustainability-linked bond handbook – insights from the case studies & fixed income space
Ulf Erlandsson, CEO, AFII
16:00 – 16:30 | Issue in focus: The energy transition we need, want or can have – busting the renewable energy myths. How and why should we finance more renewable energy.
Walburga Hemetsberger, CEO, Solar Europe in conversation with Jan Krcmar, Director, Czech Solar Association
16:30 - 17:30 | 20-year anniversary of EU membership: convergence or a slow divergence?
A closing panel discussion about the CEE countries’ 20-year membership of the EU: the success stories, the challenges, and the disappointments. The session will explore whether CEE countries have become equal EU member states, and what to expect from the upcoming EU elections and the new European Commission. What should the CEE countries focus on in the next 5-10 years? What risks exist and need addressing?
Chair of the session: Martin Ehl, Editor, HN
Speakers:
Beata Jaczewska, Director of Economic Cooperation Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Helena Horská, Chief Economist, Raiffeisen Czechia
Pavlína Žáková, Deputy Minister, European Affairs Czechia
18:30 - 22:00 | CEE Sustainability Leader Awards at the Residency of the Mayor of Prague
19:00 | Words of welcome
Petr Hlaváček, Deputy Mayor of Prague

28 MAY
Tuesday

SUSTAINABILITY IN BANKING
Banking on an economic transformation

09:00-09:10 | Welcome remarks
Linda Zeilina, CEO & Founder, ISFC & Julian Toth, Director & Founder, CzhechSIF
09:10 – 09:20 | Opening keynote Rashmi Ghai, Global Head of Citi Commercial Bank Sustainability & ESG, Citi bank
09:20 – 09:45 | Keynote presentation: MBH and its Green Transition Path
Gyorgy Szege, Head of ESG, MBH Bank Hungary
09:45 – 10:40 | Conversation with the audience: The road to net zero – fixing the data issues and rethinking banking in CEE
Chair of the session: Gergö Wieder, KPMG (confirmed)
András Molnár, Chief Sustainable Finance Advisor, OTP Group
Jason Channell, Managing Director - Head of Sustainable Finance, Citi Bank Global Insights
Ulrike Gehmacher, Head of Group ESG, Erste Group (confirmed)
11:20– 11:40 | Keynote presentation from the European Central Bank
Irene Heemskerk, Head of the Climate Change Centre, ECB
11:40 – 12:30 | Conversation with the audience: Green debt instruments – solution to financing challenges or an expensive distraction?
Chair of the session Nadia Humphreys, Head of Sustainable Finance Data Solutions, Bloomberg
Sean Kidney, CEO, Climate Bonds Initiative
Luca Bertalot, Secretary General, EMF-ECBC
András Bebes, Head of Strategy, Research and Sustainable Finance Department at the Hungarian Government Debt Management Agency Pte. Ltd.
Robert Spruijt, Head Sustainable Finance EMEA (Europe, Middle East& Africa), ING Bank
13:30 – 14:00 | Presentation by EBA about the main focus areas: what to expect going forward with Q&A
Ali Erbilgiç, Senior Expert, EBA & Member, EU Platform on Sustainable Finance
14:00– 14:30 | Conversation with the audience: GAR and its usefulness
Chair of the session: Julian Toth, Director, Czech SIF
Gabor Gyura, UNEP FI & Former head of Sustainable Finance, MNB
Matej Michlik, Senior Manager at Financial Services Consulting, EY (confirmed)
Eila Kreivi, Former Sustainable Finance Advisor, EIB
14:30 – 15:00 | Discussion: Practical experiences from CSRD Double Materiality Assessment: what do you need to be aware of"?
Session focused on CSRD reporting in practice for the banking sector & for business – what and how is changing, and how it will affect businesses. What one needs to know and not miss when carrying out a double materiality assessment.
Petra Ondrušová, CSO, Ceska Sporitelna in conversation with Radek Laštovička, EY
16:00 – 16:15 | Presentation
Eva Neudertová, ESG expert, Commercial Real Estate at Ceska Sporitelna
16:15 – 17:00 | Panel discussion: Supervision in flux? GAR, climate stress testing, supervision of climate risk – and the future of supervisory activities
Supervision in flux? GAR, climate stress testing, supervision of climate risk – and the future of supervisory activities
Questions related to capacity, translating the needs into questions to the banks, SREP, low credit levels – how to use prudential supervision to facilitate more lending.
Chair of the session: Linda Zeilina, CEO, ISFC
Speakers:
Reiner Martin, Executive Director, NBS
Adam Banai, Executive Director, Monetary Policy Instruments, Financial Stability & Foreign Reserve Management, MNB
Martin Krivanek, KPMG CEE Director, Sustainability
Agnieszka Smoleńska, Assistant Professor, EUI Florence School of Banking and Finance & Visiting Fellow at the LSE Centre for Economic Transition Expertise (CETEx)
Pierre Monnin, Senior Fellow at the Council on Economic Policies (CEP), Visiting Professor in Practice at the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, LSE
17:00 – 17:40 | Will net zero commitments lead to the decarbonisation of CEE economies?
Chair of the session: Raphael Minder, Central Europe Correspondent, The Financial Times (confirmed)
Eva Bučová, Head of Corporate Sector Coverage & Chair Sustainability Committee, ING Bank
Norbert Kurilla, Green Transition Advisor to the President at the Office of the President of the Slovak Republic &Vice-President, UNEA-6 (confirmed)
Roland Hofman, Co-Founder & CEO, URBANITY (confirmed)
17:45 - 18:30 | Historical tram transfer to Lobkowicz Palace
18:30 - 19:00 | Welcome drinks
19:00 - 22:30 | Gala dinner and inspirational speeches

29 MAY
Wednesday

SUSTAINABILITY IN BUSINESS
Sustainability for value creation

09:00 – 09:10 | Opening remarks
Linda Zeilina-Cross, CEO, ISFC & Julian Toth, Director & Founder, CzechSIF
09:10 – 09:25 | First keynote speech
Nathan Fabian, Chief Strategy Officer, UN PRI
09:25 – 09:40 | Second keynote speech
Maxfield Weiss, Executive Director, CDP Europe
09:40 – 10:20 | CSRD and ESRS – lessons from implementation and early practices for improving business competitiveness - the use of sustainability performance and data disclosures.
Chair of the session: Nadia Humphreys, Global head of Corporate ESG data, Bloomberg
Nathan Fabian, Chief Strategy Officer, UN PRI
Jenny Bofinger- Schuster, Board member ISSB
Gary Mazzotti, CEO EP Infrastructure
Jessica Bingham, Regional Lead Policy & Insights for EEMA & UK, ACCA
11:00 – 11:20 | TED-style talk – Value chain approach to tackling upstream Scope 3 emissions (WBCSD Presentation of PACT)
Nicolas Duvoisin, World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD)
11:20 - 11:35 | On-stage live interview with CBCSD representative and WBCSD
Petr Dovolil, CBCSD & Nicolas Duvoisin, World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD)
11:35– 11:55 | Presentation: Integration of no-financial information into financial reporting
Stephan Müller, Global Solution Owner for Finance and Risk, SAP
11:55 – 12:40 | Conversation with the audience – interactive panel discussion with the audience: Transition planning and implementation – how to create a successful transition. How to use disclosures for transition planning?
Chair of the session: Simon Mundy, Editor, Moral Money, The Financial Times
Speakers:
Ivan Jakúbek, Chief Strategy Officer, Eurowag
Justyna Wysocka-Golec, Associate Partner, Consulting, ESG, Decarbonisation and Biodiversity Team Leader, KPMG Poland
Christine Würfel, Head of Group ESG & Sustainability Management, Raiffeisen International Group
Jana Ružická, Sustainability Director,Mazars Slovakia
Marcus Pugh-Smith,Client Portfolio Manager, Goldman Sachs Asset Management Fundamental Equity
13:30 – 13:50 | Keynote speech: Jenny Bofinger-Schuster, Board Member, ISSB
13:50 – 14:40 | Discussion with the audience: Real Estate – from idea of sustainability to execution
Chair of the session: Raúl Garcia Rodriguez, Partner, EY (confirmed)
Speakers:
Peter Sweatman, CEO Climate & Partners (confirmed)
Stefan de Goeij MRICS, Partner, Head of Sustainability & ESG, CEE, at Cushman & Wakefield (confirmed)
Anna Duchnowska, Managing Director, Invesco Real Estate
Petra Hajna, Group Sustainability Officer, CPI
14:40 – 15:00 | Special presentation
Petr Vogel, Partner & Specialist Consultant, EkoWATT
Interpretation of EU taxonomy technical screening criteria
15:40– 16:00 | TED-Style presentation: CRREM and best practices for real estate assets
Hunter Kuhlwein, Project Lead, CRREM - Carbon Risk Real Estate Monitor
16:00 – 17:00 | Panel discussion: Real Estate value drivers and the changes in financing real estate for net zero
Chair of the session: Raúl Garcia Rodriguez, Partner, EY (confirmed)
Speakers:
Ms. Paloma Taltavull de La Paz, Chair, Real Estate Market (REM) Advisory Group, UNECE Committee on Urban Development, Housing and Land Management & Professor, Departamento de Análisis Económico Aplicado, Universidad de Alicante, Spain
Adam Targowski, Group Head of ESG, CTP
Andrzej Gutowski, ESG Chief Officer, Central and Eastern Europe, Colliers
17:00 – 17:20 | Closing keynote
Sony Kapoor, CEO, Nordic Institute for Finance, Technology & Sustainability, Professor of Climate, Geoeconomics & Finance, EUI (confirmed)
17:20 – 17:30 | Final closing remarks and an announcement about 2025
17:00 - 17:20 | Closing Keynote speech
Sony Kapoor, CEO, Nordic Institute for Finance, Technology and Sustainability & Visiting Professor, EUI
17:20 - 17:30 Closing remarks
17:30 onwards | Light dinner and drinks in a historical garden in Malá Strana