The European Investment Bank Group is one of the world’s largest green financiers.
The Climate Bank Roadmap (2021-2025) sets out the EIB Group’s approach to climate and environment finance.
This evaluation covers the first four years of implementation of the Climate Bank Roadmap.
Its purpose is to inform the development of the new Roadmap for 2026 to 2030, by reviewing how the Group’s financing activities, products and advisory services have evolved. The evaluation also looks at how the Roadmap was implemented.
The evaluation shows that the Climate Bank Roadmap helped the EIB Group position itself as the EU climate bank, significantly boosting its green financing and establishing it as a leading green financier. Despite some challenges, the dedicated governance structure helped engage the Group around a common objective.
The evaluation made recommendations to inform the next phase of the Climate Bank Roadmap for 2026-2030, reaffirming the Group’s role as the EU climate bank.
About the report
Key findings
How did the Group’s portfolio change since the launch of the Climate Bank Roadmap?
Since the adoption of the Climate Bank Roadmap, the EIB Group more than doubled its green financing - from 19 billion in 2019 to 44.8 billion in 2024* -, establishing itself as leading green financier.
- At the EIB, this increase mainly came from large investments in energy and transport - two sectors that were already important for climate action before the Roadmap. The Bank also incorporated green considerations more broadly across its lending operations. It also made good progress on financing adaptation, although sustained efforts will be needed to meet its ambitions.
- The EIF developed a comprehensive framework to integrate green considerations across all its business operations and mandate acquisitions. This helped it grow its support for climate action and environmental sustainability.
*2024 data is provisional and subject to audit.
WHY IT MATTERS
- At the start of a critical decade for climate action, the European Investment Bank Group committed to significantly raise its support for climate action and environmental sustainability. It also established itself as the EU climate bank.
How did the EIB Group’s offer evolve to support the Climate Bank Roadmap objectives?
The EIB Group largely relied on its existing toolkit to meet its climate and environment objectives, but the Roadmap led to some product developments. These include labelled green loans, a green bond purchasing programme, and advisory services like the Green Gateway and the Climate Adaptation Investment Advisory Platform (ADAPT). Clients value these financial products because they help show publicly their work to cut carbon emissions and support sustainability.
WHY IT MATTERS
- These product developments helped make the EIB Group’s role as the EU climate bank more visible and credible. It also supported the wider use of green finance in the global and European financial markets.
How effective was the governance structure supporting Roadmap implementation?
A dedicated governance structure and an implementation framework were set up to help implement the Roadmap. This approach worked well in bringing the Group together around a common objective. The groups and committees included staff from different parts of the Bank and levels of management, which helped encourage cooperation and break down internal barriers. However, the process involved extensive monitoring and reporting, which proved too complex and resource intensive.
WHY IT MATTERS
- A dedicated governance structure was put in place to support the big task of implementing the Climate Bank Roadmap. This involved all parts of the EIB Group and required important changes to how things were done.
How did the Roadmap contribute to the EIB Group being seen as the EU climate bank?
The Roadmap added credibility to the Group’s role as the EU climate bank. It was closely aligned with the European Green Deal and clearly set out what the Group would finance in the future, helping define its role in this area.
However, the Roadmap’s broad scope and many purposes—as a strategy, communication tool, and operational framework— limited its flexibility.
WHY IT MATTERS
- As the EIB Group prepares its next Climate Bank Roadmap, it is important to take stock of what worked well and where improvements are needed.
Recommendations
