Climate Solutions Playbook 2026 Stay ahead of the transition curve

Research evidence excerpt

Climate Solutions Playbook 2026 Stay ahead of the transition curve

Sustainability & Equity Strategy ● Global

June 2026

Executive summary

Climate investing: structural, not cyclical

Climate investing remains structurally relevant, driven by rapidly

improving clean-tech economics, rising capital deployment and

policy support (albeit uneven). Though global energy transition

investment has grown at a 20% CAGR in the past 10 years to

USD2.3trn in 20251, it must rise c3x current levels by 2030 to meet

net-zero goals, creating significant opportunities. In fact, climate-

aligned equities have delivered sustained price outperformance,

consistent with a measurable ‘climate factor’ premium. Investors

who ignore the theme risk missing out on a multi-year capital

cycle as the transition is still unfolding, with meaningful

opportunities across clean power, efficiency, storage and

adaptation, among others. Using our proprietary the HSBC Climate

Solutions Database, we identify various style and thematic

strategies through 11 stock screens, aligned with the energy

transition and climate resilience.

Climate investing: principles underpinned by pragmatism

The global clean-tech investment theme is increasingly shaped by a blend of principles and

pragmatism. Even where political momentum fluctuates, the underlying economic and societal

drivers remain powerful. In the current environment, we expect this dynamic to continue, supported

by the likelihood of a hot summer due to El Niño (2026 El Niño, 14 May 2026) and ongoing energy-

supply-related uncertainty amid conflict in the Middle-East (Net-Zero Navigator, 8 April 2026).

For investors with medium- to long-term mandates, climate investing is becoming central to both

return generation and risk management.