The EU has launched a new group of governments to promote “nature credits” — a form of financing linked to protecting and restoring ecosystems — during COP17 biodiversity talks in Yerevan, Armenia.
The initiative, called Friends of Credits for Nature and Biodiversity, was launched on behalf of the EU by environment commissioner Jessika Roswall at an event co-hosted with France and Peru on 27 October, the European Commission informed.
Nature credits are described by the Commission as financing instruments intended to attract investment into protecting, restoring and maintaining nature, with payments or returns linked to those activities.
Countries welcomed into the initiative at the launch included Finland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal and Spain, as well as Australia, Botswana, Canada, Chile, Indonesia, Japan and New Zealand.
Roswall said the group would provide “a platform for governments to cooperate internationally to foster credible investment that protects and preserves nature.”
Links to wider biodiversity funding efforts
The Friends of Credits for Nature and Biodiversity is an informal, government-led initiative designed to build international support for nature credits and strengthen cooperation on biodiversity finance, the Commission said.
Work on the initiative will continue after COP17, including an EU side-event at UNFCCC COP31 on 18 November, the Commission added, referring to the UN climate summit.
The Commission stressed that the EU adopted a “Roadmap towards Nature Credits” in July 2025, setting out plans to develop and test nature credits through research, pilot projects and stakeholder consultation.
The EU spends an average of €1 billion per year supporting global partners on biodiversity and nature protection, the Commission said, including through the NaturAfrica initiative, which it said supports biodiversity conservation in Africa with €1.4 billion and was launched in 2022.
