A community dedicated to sustainable finance
Sustainable Finance Geneva is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting sustainable finance, comprising individual members and institutional partners. Together, they represent a one-of-a-kind ecosystem that embodies the diversity of Geneva and its determination to make sustainable finance the “new normal”.
Founded in 2008 by 15 passionate visionaries, SFG is the most influential organization of its kind in French-speaking Switzerland today, driving the debate on the future of finance.
Our mission is to unite, promote and encourage synergies across this exceptional community, which has helped put Geneva on the map as one of the world’s top centres for sustainable finance.
- The Bridge, Geneva’s sustainable finance newsletter
- Projects and market studies led by SFG or initiated in collaboration with our partners
- The latest industry news via our website and social media
- Events for members and regional players (seminars, training courses, etc.)
- Networking and idea-sharing to encourage synergies
- Committees of experts providing insights on market trends, legal issues, training, etc.
- A coworking space
We named our newsletter “the Bridge” to highlight the many connections and synergies that exist between finance and impact. We aim to build bridges between Geneva’s left and right banks – its financial institutions and international organizations, in other words.
Every movement needs champions.
From our founders to the people who serve on our governing bodies or participate in our activities, SFG members and partners share their vision, knowledge, passion and expertise to shape a more environmentally and socially responsible financial industry.
SFG members hail from banks, financial institutions, consulting firms, NGOs, local and national government, multinationals, academia and law firms. Collectively, they volunteer over 400 hours of their time each year. We are deeply grateful to them for their contribution.
Transparency is central to our governance. SFG’s bodies include the Executive Bureau, the Strategy and Surveillance Committee, the Management Team and various other commissions and project groups. A general meeting of the members is held once a year.
SFG / President, Executive Office, S&S Committee
Wecan Group SA / Managing Partner
Fabio has more than 15 years of experience in sustainable finance, particularly investments related to sustainable development goals. He played a pioneer role in the field of microfinance joining Symbiotics at inception where he first developed the Latin America market (10 countries) which grew to 300 million US Dollars by 2009 and spurred the company to open its first regional office in Mexico City. In 2012, he headed up the pipeline & brokerage unit, managing several large advisory mandates as well as Symbiotics’ first bond transactions. Following this, he headed the business development unit, where he set up the company’s first sales activities and developed and acquired several new mandates. He largely contributed to the success of the firm thanks to the implementation of several key-partnerships which made possible for Symbiotics to exceed USD 2 billions under management until the end of 2017, for an exhibition in more than 70 countries.
Prior to joining Symbiotics, he worked for the Human Rights Policy section of the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs and for Lombard Odier & Cie, a Swiss private bank.
He is now associate director at Wecan Group, a fintech company specializing in digital financing solutions and blockchain.
Fabio joined Sustainable Finance Geneva (SFG) in 2012, first as treasurer, than as Vice-president. He is President since 2016.
Fabio holds a master’s degree in International Relations from the Graduate Institute (IHEID) in Geneva.
Areas of expertise: digital finance, microfinance, impact investing
Contact: f.sofia@sfgeneva.org
SFG / Vice-President, Executive Office, S&S Committee
DE PURY PICTET TURRETTINI / Responsible of the Institutional management
In 1996, while obtaining a master in finance from the University of St. Gallen, Dominique Habegger started his career as the first employee of Sustainable Asset Management (RobeccoSAM).
Throughout his career, he has always strived to demonstrate that it is possible to reconcile responsibility with profitability. In 1998, Lombard Odier hires him to set up a methodology to manage “extra-financial” risks. With the help of a dedicated team of specialists, this strategy was adopted by prominent institutional investors. Drawing on his experience, Dominique Habegger wrote in 2003 the white paper for ASSET4 (Thomson Reuters) before successfully setting up the company within the co-founding team. By contributing to expand Ethos’ business activities between 2008 and 2013, he had the chance to better understand the constraints of pension funds.
Today, Dominique Habegger is head of institutional asset management and responsible for the Cadmos Funds at de Pury Pictet Turrettini. He rejoined Melchior de Muralt, his colleague from Lombard Odier and pioneer of sustainable finance.
Areas of expertise: sustainable finance, making sustainability profitable, institutional asset management.
Contact: habegger@ppt.ch
SFG / Vice-President, Exectutive Office, S&S Committee
OBERSON ABELS / Partner
After working in law firms in Geneva and Zurich (2003 – 2016), Antoine Amiguet co-founded OBERSON ABELS SA in early 2016.
Antoine Amiguet holds a law degree from the University of Lausanne (1997) and a bar exam (2000). He received a Master of Laws (LL.M.) from New York University (2003). He is also admitted to the New York Bar (2005).
He practices banking and financial law with a strong interest in institutional management and sustainable finance
Areas of expertise: banking and finance, investment products and services, derivatives, capital markets and pension funds
Contact: aamiguet@obersonabels.com
SFG / Treasurer, Executive Office, S&S Committee
Former President of State Council
Living in Switzerland since the age of 4, David Hiler studied economic and social sciences (mention economic history) at the University of Geneva, where he would later teach.
He is one of the pioneers of the Geneva Green Party becoming secretary general in 2003. He was elected to the city council of the city of Geneva, and he was deputy to the cantonal parliament between 1993 and 2005. Elected to the cantonal government in 2005, he would preside over the department of finances.
Alongside his colleagues in government, he worked to reduce the public debt which had reached more than twelve billion Swiss Francs by the beginning of 2005. This objective was accomplished by modernising and rationalizing the cantonal administration by taking measures to increase efficiency and cut costs. He also reformed human resources and developed controls and oversight of management to foster good governance.
In 2009 he was elected to a second 4 year mandate, obtaining the most votes in the election. He chose to head the department of finances in order to continue pursuing reforms. Most notably he pushed an important fiscal reform in favor of families and the middle class, and he reformed the public pension system.
In 2012 David Hiler informed his party that he would step down as head of the party before the 2013 elections. His actions during his time at the head of the department of finances are unanimously supported by the political class.
SFG / S&S Committee and Co-founder
CONSER INVEST / Head of advisory and external relations
Angela de Wolff is a founding partner of Conser Invest, an independent advisory and asset management firm dedicated to sustainable investment solutions for private and institutional clients since 2007. Angela de Wolff has been involved in the financial sector for 20 years, 12 of which in the field of sustainable investment. She advises and supports several financial institutions among the current responsible investment leaders, helping them to acquire the tools and processes necessary to deploy a sustainable financial management.
She began her career as a consultant with Andersen Consulting. In 1994, she was taken on as a senior financial analyst in the Research Department at Darier Hentsch & Cie. From 2002 to 2006, she was Head of the SRI team at Lombard Odier Darier Hentsch. In 2010 she has been elected as Board Director of “Banque Cantonale de Genève” (BCGE).
Angela obtained a Master in economics from the Lausanne University in 1989 and a Master’s in international management from IFOR-Bocconi (Milan) in 1990. She became a Certified European Financial Analyst (CEFA) in 2000.
Angela was SFG’s President from 2008 to 2012.
Areas of expertise: SRI, Impact Investing
Contact: angela.dewolff@conser.ch
SFG / S&S Committee and Co-founder
CONSER INVEST / Partner in charge of the risk management and ESG integration
Jean Laville is a partner of Conser Invest since 2012, an independent advisory and asset management firm dedicated to sustainable investment solutions for private and institutional clients since 2007.
Jean Laville has been active in the financial sector since 25 years, including 15 in the field of Responsible Investment (SRI). He develops and runs quantitative tools enabling the systematic screening of the fund universe and the compliance of underlying holdings with ESG objectives. As Deputy Director he has been managing Ethos Foundation’s and Ethos Services’ from 2002 to 2012. Previously he held the position of quantitative asset manager with Banque Pictet & Cie in Geneva, since 1998.
In 1980, Jean Laville graduated in economics, majoring in political economy, from the Higher Business School (HEC) in Lausanne. He then followed the doctorate program from the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva.
Jean was SFG’s Vice-President from 2008 to 2014.
Areas of expertise: institutional asset management, quantitative approach to asset management, ESG modelisation & research, corporate governance, engagement, dialogue within companies on ESG
Contact: jean.laville@conser.ch
SFG / Executive Office, S&S Committee
Credit Suisse / Head of Sustainable and Impact Products
Since September 2019, Guillaume Bonnel has been working at Credit Suisse Zurich as Head of Sustainable and Impact Products.
After a few missions in developing countries, Guillaume joined BNP Paribas in 2006 to create and develop their range of sustainable investment financial products. He then moved to Cameroon with Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), to lead the Finance and Human Resource teams of several health related projects. After this humanitarian mission, he performed a few due diligences of microfinance institutions in Ghana, before joining Lombard Odier in 2013.
Guillaume headed the Impact Investing approach of Lombard Odier. He used to manage a development finance fund, co-manage the Impact mandates and he was part of the investment committee of a fund focusing on green and social bonds.
Guillaume holds a master’s degree in Economics and Management from the University Paris-Dauphine and a Post Graduate Degree in Management from Mines-Telecom Business School in France. He speaks French, English, Spanish and he has notions of Russian.
SFG / S&S Committee
GFRI / Director
In addition to being the Director of the Geneva Finance Research Institute, Rajna Gibson holds a Swiss Finance Research Institute Senior Chair and is professor of Finance at the University of Geneva.
She was Head of Research at the Swiss Finance Institute from 2007 until 2014 and Director of the National Centre of Competence in Research FINRISK from 2001 until 2009. She holds a PhD in Economic and Social Sciences (Specialization in Finance) from the University of Geneva. She is a Board Member at Swiss Re since 2000 and she is a former Member of the Swiss Federal Banking Commission (1997-2004).
Her research interests are in Experimental Finance, Asset Pricing, Alternative Investments and Corporate Governance. She currently teaches the courses “Advanced Asset Pricing” and “Hedge Funds” in the Master in Wealth Management.
Areas of expertise: research in sustainable finance
Contact: rajna.gibson@unige.ch
SFG / S&S Committee
UNIGESTION SA / CEO
Fiona Frick is the Chief Executive Officer of Unigestion. She began her career at Unigestion in 1990, initially as a fundamental analyst covering traditional asset classes, subsequently taking on more senior positions as investment manager for high yield and convertible bond funds.
In 1995, at the request of Unigestion’s CEO, she led the development of the company’s equity activity, based on the Minimum Variance anomaly, and started developing and heading a dedicated Equity team. As Head of the Equity team, she was responsible for the development of the approach as well as the implementation of the investment process.
Fiona was appointed Chief Executive Officer of Unigestion in January 2011. She remains involved in the company’s equity activity as Chairman of the Equity Investment Committee.
Fiona holds a Master of Business Administration from the Institut Supérieur de Gestion in Paris and graduated with a degree in Literature and Philosophy from the University of Dijon. She has also completed a number of executive education programmes at IMD Business School in Lausanne.
Areas of expertise: asset management
Contact: ffrick@unigestion.com
SFG / S&S Committee
SFG / S&S Committee
MIRABAUD & CIE SA / CEO
CEO of Mirabaud SCA since July 1st, 2019, Camille Vial is member of the Executive Committee of Mirabaud & Cie SA, where she heads up Portfolio Management.
A specialist in numerical analysis and holder of a Master’s degree in mathematics from the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Camille first joined the almost 200 year-old Geneva private bank in 2001. She initially gained experience in areas as varied as human resources, strategy and customer-facing duties before becoming head of portfolio management in 2009. She rounded out this diversified experience, which took her from Mirabaud’s head office in Geneva to its London subsidiary Mirabaud Securities, with spells as an analyst at Lloyd George Management and Tim Tacchi International.
Steeped in a banking tradition from the earliest age, Camille is a passionate promoter of innovative, efficient, sustainable finance. She represents the seventh generation of her family owning the Bank.
Areas of expertise: private banking
Contact: camille.vial@mirabaud.com
SFG / S&S Committee
B LAB (SWITZERLAND) / Founder & Executive Director
Jonathan Normand, coming from a background in mathematics and algorithmic development, spent 12 years in financial institutions before co-founding Codethic in 2009, a consulting business in governance and social responsibility. Having specialized in innovation, the improvement of global performance, and sustainable growth, he is passionate about the economy’s evolution and analyses its tendencies and ruptures. He co-found the Swiss Crowdfunding Association in 2015 and he seats on various boards to accelerate and engage the actors of tomorrow’s impact driven economy.
In 2013, next to his other activities he participates in the establishment of the Non-profit organization B LAB in Europe, and in 2017 he becomes the director of the Swiss chapter. B Lab missions: providing tools for assessing companies’ social and environmental impacts, an impact rating solution for investors (GIIRS) and lobbying to promote innovative legal forms (Benefit Corporation). Next to gathering 2250 certified companies worldwide, the movement Bcorp is a community of entrepreneurs wishing to compete to be best for the world, and as a result society will enjoy a more shared and durable prosperity.
Areas of expertise: analysis of impact and overall performance, good governance, management systems, engagement and dialogue with companies and institutions on aspects of inclusive economy
Contact: jonathan@bcorporation.eu
SFG / S&S Committee
FC4S / Senior Advisor
Mark Halle dedicated his whole career to environment and sustainable development. He began his career in the field of international negotiations, serving in the diplomatic secretariat of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe.
He then spent five years with the United Nations Environment Programme. From there he shifted to the NGO world, working four years for WWF-International and fourteen for IUCN, first in the Conservation Centre for Development where he became director and finally as Director of Policies and Partnerships. Subsequently, he left to found IISD-Europe. He led it until his retirement in 2016 and remained special Advisor.
Mark was then Executive Director of International Institute for Sustainable Development’s European organization. In the years before retirement in 2016, Mark focused principally on reform of the rules governing financial and capital markets. IISD did pioneering work on “greening” finance in China, leading to the establishment of the Green Finance Study Group under the G20 and to the establishment of the UNEP Inquiry into the Design of a Sustainable Financial System, where he served as Senior Advisor for the four years of the Inquiry’s work. He is presently focused strongly on the international network of Financial Centres for Sustainability, whose Secretariat is now being established in Geneva.
Mark studied History at Tufts University (USA) and at Cambridge University. He is a Swiss, Italian and US citizen. Mark sits on six Boards, of which he chairs two.
SFG / S&S Committee
GLOBAL FUND / Advisory and audit officer
As an advisory and audit officer at the Global Fund, the world’s largest financier of anti-AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria programs, Cécile Debiolles assesses a wide range of thematic ranging from strategic governance to grant implementation and performance reviews.
Convinced of the role of business in development, she has built a solid experience across both sectors. Starting her career in corporate law firms, she subsequently worked as a multi-asset class investment analyst for JP Morgan in Geneva, where she also acted as a representative for Sustainable Investments and Philanthropy.
In the public and civil society spaces, her background encompasses public-private partnerships (United Nations), high-impact/social entrepreneurship (Endeavor, Ashoka), international economic cooperation (French Embassy to Colombia) and peace education (CISV International).
Following her graduate studies at Paris 2 – Panthéon Assas (France) and Rosario (Colombia) Law schools, and qualification as a lawyer in both countries, Cécile completed a Master’s in Internal Public Policy from UCL (London) in 2014. Her ongoing interest in sustainable finance led her to write her master’s thesis on the “role of development finance institutions in impact investing”.
SFG / S&S Committee
PICTET GROUP / Head of Stewardship
Marie-Laure Schaufelberger is Head of Stewardship for the Pictet Group. She began her career at Pictet in 2007 within the media relations and public affairs team. In 2014 she moved to Pictet Asset Management’s Thematic Equities team as a Product Specialist, covering business development and client-servicing for several environmental and social impact strategies. She coordinates the Pictet Group’s Sustainability Board and sits on the Board of Pictet’s Philanthropic Foundation.
She holds a Masters in International Relations from the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva and is a CFA charterholder.
Contact: mschaufelberger@pictet.com
The Annual General Meeting is an opportunity to review SFG’s activities over the past year with our members, who then vote on the organization’s budget.
The Strategy and Surveillance Committee (S&SC) comprises a maximum of 15 members. It is tasked with defining SFG’s long-term strategic objectives and determining which initiatives we should prioritize to achieve our aims.
The Chair of the S&SC is chosen from among the committee members on a rotating basis and serves for two years.
Executive Bureau
The Executive Bureau supports the management team and is responsible for implementing the decisions of the Strategy and Surveillance Committee. It comprises five members in addition to the director of SFG and meets once a month.
The Management Team is responsible for the day-to-day operations of SFG, from organizing activities and events to managing communications and member relations.
John is the Executive Director of Sustainable Finance Geneva (SFG). He joined SFG from R20 Regions of Climate Action where he was Chief Investment Officer.
John has spent 18 years in sustainable finance and impact investment, and almost 10 years prior to this in the management fast-track of FT-100 listed multi-national De La Rue. John’s experience brings a deep understanding of the drivers of financial as well as impact (environmental and social) value, gained from working to create sustainable value at the intersection between government, private business, investment and civil society. He has developed deep knowledge of the private-markets fund industry (PE, venture capital and infrastructure), of Impact Investing, the international Development industry, philanthropy and NGOs.
John holds a Finance and entrepreneurship MBA, a BA and MA (Hons) from the University of Cambridge, and has diplomas from the Climate Leadership Programme at the University of Cambridge and the Fintech Programme at the University of Oxford. Born in Geneva, he is a Swiss and British national, has lived and worked in seven countries, and speaks fluent English, French and Italian.
Contact: j.tidmarsh@sfgeneva.org
Claudia Gonçalves is SFG office manager. She supports the SFG Director and the Strategic and Surveillance Committee with administrative, HR and accounting tasks while also managing our co-working space.
She holds a Masters in International Economic History and a Bachelor in Social and Economic History from the University of Geneva.
Contact : c.goncalves@sfgeneva.org
Zina Sanyoura is the SwiSox Project Manager, responsible for setting up the Swiss Social Stock Exchange.
Zina has 17 years of experience in development finance, impacting investing, and private equity. Prior to joining SFG in September 2019, she was a Private Markets Specialist at UBS working, advising clients on building private markets investment portfolios. Prior to that, she worked with Bamboo Capital Partners, where she was responsible for developing and managing their investment portfolio across in Africa, the Middle East, and Central Asia. She also worked with the International Finance Corporation (the World Bank Group) and the World Economic Forum. She started her career in corporate banking in Lebanon.
Zina is an MBA graduate from IMD Lausanne, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA), and speaks Arabic, English, French and Portuguese.
Areas of expertise: private equity, development finance, impact investing, emerging markets, financial inclusion
Contact : z.sanyoura@sfgeneva.org
SFG was founded by a group of passionate visionaries who saw an opportunity to create impetus and foster synergies between like-minded professionals. “We came together to share our expertise and help build an international movement for sustainable finance,” explains SFG president Angela de Wolff.
Quote from the press release announcing the official launch of SFG on October 28th 2008.
