Finastra’s Sandrine Markham on technology’s role in sustainable finance
Video not playing? Watch via Youtube.
At the ICC UK Sustainability Conference in London, Trade Treasury Payments (TTP) spoke with Sandrine Markham, Global Lead for Sustainable Finance Solutions at Finastra, to explore the role of technology in enabling sustainability objectives across the financial sector.
Markham said, “Technology is quintessential. It’s part of the foundation when it comes to sustainability, but even more so in sustainable finance.” She pointed to the need for collaboration across the private and public sectors, academia, and industry, and the infrastructure required to connect them. “Technology is the glue,” she said.
One example comes from viticulture. Markham described how, due to climate change, champagne producers are now cultivating vineyards in southern England, an area traditionally outside the growing zone for sparkling wine. Satellite imagery, IoT soil sensors, and weather-linked analytics now help producers monitor vineyard health and optimise operations. That same data infrastructure, she explained, can be connected to finance.
“If a champagne house wants to borrow and they want to have a sustainable impact, they can do what we call a sustainability-linked loan,” said Markham. In these structures, specific key performance indicators (KPIs) are embedded in the loan documentation and tracked throughout the lending lifecycle. “That’s what we have right now at Finastra,” she said. “All the KPIs are calculated and linked directly to the performance of the loan.”
But environmental KPIs are only part of the equation. Increasingly, financial institutions are also looking to integrate social outcomes, especially around gender.
Markham pointed to a project in India, where women working on salt farms transitioned from diesel-powered pumps to solar pumps, backed by public-private collaboration. “You’re minimising GHG emissions, so there’s your voluntary carbon credit,” she said. “But more importantly, the project was about SDG 5.5: gender equality. These women increased their income and received training. The technology linked it all, and investors could see the impact. It was qualified, quantified, and verified.”
Whether tracking emissions or measuring progress against social targets, technology is becoming a necessary enabler of trust, transparency, and accountability in sustainable finance. “It’s all about making the impact palpable,” said Markham.
Key Topics
- The role of technology in sustainable finance
- Using data, AI and IoT to measure sustainability
- Collaboration between public and private sectors
- Sustainable finance instruments such as linked loans and bonds
- Balancing environmental and social impact within ESG
Key Insights
Expert Analysis
Sandrine Markham, Global Lead for Sustainable Finance Solutions at Finastra, highlights that technology plays a defining role in turning sustainability ambitions into measurable outcomes. It not only supports communication across stakeholders but also enables the collection and analysis of data needed to track real impact. She points to practical examples to bring this to life. Climate change is already influencing where products such as sparkling wine can be produced, while technologies like satellite monitoring and soil sensors help producers adapt by providing timely, data driven insights. AI then builds on this by identifying patterns and anomalies, helping businesses make informed decisions. Markham also stresses that sustainable finance is evolving. While much of the focus has historically been on environmental factors, there is growing recognition of the importance of social impact. Projects such as solar powered salt farms in India demonstrate how environmental improvements can go hand in hand with social progress, in this case supporting women’s income and financial independence. Ultimately, she underlines that technology, combined with strong partnerships, is what allows sustainability to move from concept to something concrete, measurable and investable.— Sandrine Markham
Key Findings
- Technology improves transparency and strengthens accountability
- Clear, measurable data helps make sustainability more accessible and credible
- AI and IoT are becoming essential tools in tracking ESG outcomes
- Environmental and social goals can be successfully addressed together
- Demonstrating real world impact is critical to driving further investment
Implications
- Technology improves transparency and strengthens accountability
- Clear, measurable data helps make sustainability more accessible and credible
- AI and IoT are becoming essential tools in tracking ESG outcomes
- Environmental and social goals can be successfully addressed together
- Demonstrating real world impact is critical to driving further investment
Key Takeaways
- Technology underpins modern sustainable finance
- Reliable data is essential to demonstrate real impact
- Collaboration is key to achieving meaningful outcomes
- Financial structures are evolving to reflect ESG performance
- Sustainable finance supports both environmental and social progress
