Mumbai : National Stock Exchange of India Limited (NSE), in association with FICCI Centre for Sustainability Leadership, today hosted the World Environment Day Summit 2026 on the theme “Capital Markets as the Gateway of Climate Finance in India.” The summit brought together regulators, policymakers, institutional investors, corporates, sustainability experts and market participants to deliberate on scaling climate finance and accelerating India’s transition towards a low-carbon economy. A key theme that emerged from the discussions was that India’s transition to a sustainable and climate-resilient economy will require unprecedented mobilisation of private capital. Participants highlighted that achieving India’s Net Zero 2070 ambition will require investments of approximately USD 10.9 trillion, creating significant opportunities for capital markets to channel long-term financing into clean energy, sustainable infrastructure, industrial decarbonisation, climate adaptation and emerging green technologies.

The Summit discussed the evolution of India’s sustainable finance ecosystem, including Green Equity, ESG Debt Securities, Sustainability-Linked Instruments, Municipal Green Bonds and Transition Finance. Deliberations highlighted the growing role of Indian capital markets in supporting climate-aligned investments while strengthening transparency, disclosure standards and investor confidence through frameworks such as BRSR and the emerging Climate Finance Taxonomy.

The summit had seen the presence of key senior dignitaries in fireside chats and panel discussions including Dr. Harish Ahuja, Executive Vice President, NSE, Shri. Navneet Munot, MD&CEO, HDFC Asset Management Company Limited, Shri. Prashanth Venkatesh, Director, Sustainability, HUL, Shri. Aman Mittal, IAS, Joint CEO, MITRA, Shri. Ananthan NS, Head Treasury, L&T, Smt. Vineeta Shetty, MD, NSE Sustainability Ratings and Analytics Ltd., Ms. Neha Kumar, Head, South Asia, Climate Bonds Initiative,

Smt. Jaicy Paul, Former CGM, ESG & Climate Finance, SBI, and Smt. Sreelakshmi Hariharan, MD & CEO, Ecube Investment Advisors.

During the inaugural session while addressing the audience:

Shri Ashishkumar Chauhan, MD & CEO, National Stock Exchange of India Limited, mentioned “India’s climate transition requires capital at an unprecedented scale. Capital markets can play a pivotal role in channeling long-term investments towards sustainable infrastructure, clean energy and climate-resilient growth.”

Mr. Deepak A Trivedi , CFO and CGM, SEBI highlighted that “Strong disclosures, robust governance and investor confidence are essential for scaling sustainable finance and supporting India’s long-term development objectives.”

Dr. Mukund Govind Rajan, Chairman, ECube Investment Advisors & Chair, BRICS Task Force on ESG & Green Finance, highlighted that ” India’s climate ambitions present a significant opportunity for innovation and investment. Developing credible and scalable sustainable finance frameworks will be critical for mobilising capital”

Shri Ajay Saxena, Maharashtra Institution for Transformation (MITRA), Government of Maharashtra stated that “Climate transition can be a powerful driver of economic growth, innovation and job creation. Partnerships across public and private stakeholders will be essential to unlock this opportunity.”

Shri Prabodha Acharya, Co-Chair, FICCI Environment & Climate Change Committee & Group CSO, JSW Group highlighted that ” Sustainability is increasingly becoming integral to business strategy. Collaboration across industry, regulators and financial markets will be key to accelerating climate action.”

The Summit concluded with a shared view that India is entering the next phase of sustainable finance, where capital markets will play an increasingly important role in supporting climate transition, fostering innovation and enabling sustainable economic growth. Participants emphasized that continued collaboration between regulators, exchanges, investors, corporates and policymakers will be critical to bridging India’s climate finance gap and building a resilient, future-ready economy.