Experts predict only the government and elite investors would benefit from the move
A new investment vehicle under the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) would attempt to quantify the dollar value of water, air and land, according to some experts against the move. The rule would allow governments, farmers and other owners of natural assets to form a public corporation that holds the rights to the ecosystem services on a piece of land.
The NYSE, which is regulated by the Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC), proposed a rule on October 4 that would approve the creation of the “Natural Asset Company (NAC),” which critics see as a way for both the government and elite investors to profit off the protection of natural resources prioritized in green energy policies. The comment period ended October 25, just 21 days after it was proposed.
This “new class of listed company based on nature and the benefits that nature provides” was created by the Intrinsic Exchange Group (IEG) in partnership with the NYSE, which has already signaled its support for NACs as a vehicle to “address the large and complex challenges of climate change and the transition to a more sustainable economy.”
“Ending the overconsumption of and underinvestment in nature requires bringing natural assets into the financial mainstream,” the rule reads.