UAE Ministry of Economy chooses Intesa Sanpaolo Group for Transition to Circular Economy

The Ministry of Economy of the United Arab Emirates has entered into a Strategic Master Agreement with Intesa Sanpaolo, through the IMI Corporate & Investment Banking Division and Intesa Sanpaolo Innovation Center. The agreement is aimed at promoting the adoption of circular economy principles and designing a circular ecosystem in the Country.

The master agreement has been signed by the Minister of Economy of the United Arab Emirates, His Excellency Abdulla Bin Touq Al Marry, the Chief of Intesa Sanpaolo IMI Corporate and Investment Banking Division, Mauro Micillo, and the Deputy Chairman of Intesa Sanpaolo Innovation Center, Paolo Maria Vittorio Grandi.

Experience and expertise demonstrated in accompanying both mature companies operating in the Middle East and circular start-ups towards a new economic-productive model are the assets that led the UAE to select the Intesa Sanpaolo Group as the reference partner for its transition.

The IMI Corporate & Investment Banking Division, together with the Dubai and Abu Dhabi branches, and the Intesa Sanpaolo Innovation Center will support the UAE Ministry of Economy in designing and launching policies for encouraging the adoption of circular practises,

promoting consistent innovative business models and developing an ecosystem that involves institutions, universities, research centres, companies, and start-ups.

The initial phase of the project will focus on environmental mapping and identifying the Country’s potentials and stakeholders and will be just the first step of a broader collaboration process in which Intesa Sanpaolo will also support the UAE Government in designing and launching a Circular Economy Laboratory.

The next steps will entail a growing collaboration between the Intesa Sanpaolo Group and the UAE Circular Economy Council with a view to promoting circular models within the local ecosystem. In particular, Intesa Sanpaolo will foster the structuring and financing of local circular economy projects by leveraging the EUR 8Bn circular facility envisaged in the 2022-2025 Business Plan as well as its expertise in ESG/Sustainable Finance. Intesa Sanpaolo Innovation Center will provide the CE Lab’s advisory, its own acceleration programmes for start-ups and the support of venture capital funds from its subsidiary Neva SGR.

For futher information, see the Press Release