The ocean is a vital tool in the fight against climate change, absorbing almost all the planet’s excess heat and a quarter of global carbon dioxide emissions. It also supports the livelihoods of billions of people globally. Forty percent of the world’s population rely on fish for their daily protein intake, more than 30 million are employed in the blue economy or in sectors exposed to the ocean, and 80% of global trade is carried across the ocean. The WWF estimates that the overall value of the ocean to society is more than 50% of global GDP.

Yet the scale of investment does not yet match the scale of opportunity. A World Economic Forum report on Sustainable Development Goal 14 (“Life Below Water”) financing in 2022 estimated a cumulative funding gap of at least $900 billion between now and 2030.

The good news is the right foundations are being laid to turn the tide on the issue of underinvestment in our ocean. In this report, we argue that a range of sustainable finance vehicles are available to mobilise capital at scale towards the blue economy and that key barriers to investment –such as investor concerns over data availability and lack of clear policy frameworks –are gradually being overcome.

We leverage the unique databases of the Ocean Impact Navigator and The Earthshot Prize and showcase 10 of the thousands of innovative start-ups and investors that are engaged in creating a more sustainable blue economy, and which represent the growing universe of ocean-focused solutions that offer potential opportunities for investment.

Most importantly, we highlight that there isa vast array of investible solutions across a range of blue economy sectors which can support the transition of the real economy to more nature-positive practices. This is arguably one of the most material levers that we can pull in delivering progress towards the Global Biodiversity Framework target of halting and reversing nature loss.

With Standard Chartered’s latest sustainability study Towards a sustainable ocean: where there’s a will, there’s a wave, we aim to deepen engagement with the ocean and to catalyse the mobilisation of finance towards the blue economy by highlighting the tools and solutions that are available to investors today. I hope that this report provides you with a helpful framework for identifying and prioritising existing and emerging business opportunities that can support the much-needed transition to a sustainable ocean economy.

Marisa Drew, Chief Sustainability Officer, Standard Chartered