Dutch Central Bank updates it climate and nature risk management guide

The Dutch Central Bank’s (De Nederlandsche Bank - DNB) has updated its guide on managing climate and nature-related risks, originally published in 2023.

The guide was updated in response to the Dutch Central Bank’s growing concern about how climate change and biodiversity loss pose significant systemic risks to the stability of the Dutch financial system such as pension funds and insurance companies. It highlights DNB’s expectation that pension funds should identify and manage climate- and nature-related risks, providing revised best practice guidance to support this aim, following consultation with key stakeholders across the sector including Ortec Finance.

As part of the updated guide’s release, the regulator has announced that it will conduct risk-based assessments of the climate and nature risk analyses of Dutch pension funds, and use the results to further manage these risks from 2026 onwards, as part of its periodic assessment of relevant prudential risks.

Marion Groothuis, Senior Investment Consultant, commented: “It is positive to see DNB enhance the guidance around best practices to manage climate and nature-related risks. We believe it is important for pension funds to identify and incorporate climate risks into wider risk management frameworks, and look forward to supporting them with implementing best practice guidelines.”

Tijmen Janssen, Climate Risk Specialist added: “As the impact of climate change continues to threaten pension fund returns worldwide, we are ready to support the Dutch pension fund community in identifying climate risks and opportunities. By using our robust climate scenarios we realistically assess and translate systemic climate risks into relevant portfolio-specific insights.”

Upcoming webinar – Risicobeheersing aan de hand van de nieuwe klimaat- en natuurgids van DNB

Register for our upcoming webinar on September 29 to learn more about the updated ‘Gids voor de beheersing van klimaat- en natuurrisico’s’ guide, and how Dutch pension funds can best prepare to meet DNB’s expectations and adopt its best practice guidelines.

The webinar will be presented in Dutch.

Register for webinar