Deutsche Bank Ocean Resilience Philanthropy Fund opens for contributions

Introduced last November at COP26, the philanthropic fund is the first of its kind set up by a financial institution, giving donors the opportunity to support Nature-based Solutions (NbS) for ocean conservation efforts through a dedicated international framework to facilitate donations.

According to a research report from Deutsche Bank’s CIO Office called Coastlines in Crisis, coastal resilience measures to counter climate change will require significant investment, estimated to be up to 500 billion US dollars by 2050.

Deutsche Bank Global Head of the International Private Bank and CEO for Europe, the Middle East and Africa Claudio de Sanctis said: “We are committed to supporting ocean conservation and a sustainable blue economy. With the establishment of our Ocean Resilience Philanthropy Fund, we are excited to give clients the opportunity to help secure a better, more sustainable future for one of the world’s most precious resources, our oceans.”

The Deutsche Bank Ocean Resilience Philanthropy Fund will focus on advancing NbS to support ocean conservation and restoration initiatives. The Fund’s first initiative is the Future Climate Coral Bank, a research project in the Maldives led by the Maldives Coral Institute that aims to identify coral species that are resilient to climate change and conserve them in a living gene bank.

An estimated 50 per cent of coral reefs have been destroyed by human activity and scientists predict a 1.5 degree temperature rise threatens up to 90 per cent of the world’s reefs by 2050, due to heatwaves. The coral gene bank project in the Maldives will help the nation of islands to monitor and repair its reefs naturally, and ultimately help scientists to heal and strengthen coral reefs around the world.

IPB Head of Wealth Planning and Philanthropy, Jacqueline Valouch said: “The Fund provides a philanthropy framework for directing much needed capital to projects that support ocean restoration and resilience globally, helping to protect ocean habitats for future generations.”

The bank has committed an initial 300,000 US dollars to launch the Fund and aims to raise up to 5 million US dollars within five years.

Administered by the Charities Aid Foundation (CAF), the Fund is a Donor Advised Fund (DAF), which is a charitable fund that allows an entity or individual to make irrevocable gifts that can then be distributed to charitable causes they care about.

Deutsche Bank is a founding member of the Net-Zero Banking Alliance and was the first bank to join the Ocean Risk and Resilience Action Alliance (ORRAA) as a full member last year.

Clients interested in contributing to the Fund as part of a tailored philanthropy plan should contact our Head of Wealth Planning and Philanthropy, Jacqueline Valouch. More information on how to become a donor is available on deutschewealth.com.