Every bank in the region now calls itself sustainable. But who actually sets the definition, and can anyone verify it?
In this episode of Wall Street to MENA, Raghda Ibraheem sits down with Dr. Jelena Janjusevic, Deputy Global Head of the Accountancy, Economics and Finance Department at Edinburgh Business School, Heriot-Watt University Dubai, and MFTA member, to unpack what genuinely separates sustainable finance from greenwashing.
Dr. Jelena breaks down:
- Why an ESG label alone means nothing without measurable impact
- Who really decides what counts as “green” money (hint: no single party does)
- Why inconsistent global taxonomies create real costs for investors
- How to verify a sustainability claim instead of just trusting the marketing
- The one gap she’d tell regulators to close first
Her core message: if sustainability disappears once you remove the marketing brochure, it was never in the strategy to begin with.
🎙️ Wall Street to MENA is MFTA’s ongoing interview series spotlighting the people shaping fintech, regulation, and finance across the region.