On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Federation of Ibero American Stock Exchanges (FIAB) the regional association shared findings of their members’ progress on enhancing sustainability and transparency in their markets. To commemorate the progress, the SSE joined the anniversary event to speak on a panel discussing how FIAB members can continue to enhance sustainability in their markets. LATINEX, an SSE Partner Exchange, hosted the event which had over 1,000 participants from more than 25 countries. 

“With 17 of 23 members of FIAB being UN SSE Partner Exchanges, we have a solid base of collaboration with FIAB and its network. Building on this, we’ve collaborated on a number of projects including translations of guidance documents and capacity building, joint research and joint events,” highlighted Tiffany Grabski, SSE Academy Head. 

Liliana Forciniti, Head of Technical Assistance at the Argentinian exchange Bolsa de Valores de Buenos Aires, presented data collected by FIAB’s sustainability committee, showing increasing action by their members to enhance sustainability. Working with their members, FIAB has collected a database of their members’ own sustainability reports, ESG disclosure requirements and guidelines in each market, as well as sustainable finance products listed. According to this data, there are more than 400 sustainability-aligned bonds listed on 11 FIAB member exchanges. 

However, challenges still exist in the region, including a gap in data and transparency of corporate leadership and governance. The panel moderator, Olga Cantillo, CEO of LATINEX, brought to light challenges that were faced when FIAB and the UN SSE undertook research for a joint report on gender equality. In particular, Ms. Cantillo discussed the gap in publicly available data on leadership of companies listed on the stock market in Latin America. While this data gap creates a challenge for sustainable investment, it brings to light the fundamental role that stock markets play to improve and boost disclosure practices and transparency of its issuers.