Company insight
Blockchain and AI: at odds with sustainability?
At first glance, it may seem as if blockchain and AI are at odds with sustainability, especially when taking into account the energy consumption of large blockchain networks or the resources required for advanced AI models – at least this is the argument repeatedly put forward by critics. But in reality, these technologies can help to reduce energy consumption and utilise resources more efficiently. Blockchain, for example, can help to reduce paper consumption by replacing physical documents with digital contracts. AI can be used to analyse energy consumption patterns and make suggestions to increase efficiency. These technologies are, therefore, not only compatible with sustainability but can also help to promote it.
Why courage is needed now As a banking industry, this is a crucial point. The world is changing and everyone needs to have the courage to embrace these changes – especially with regard to
Roadmap 2025: the strategy for the entire Liechtenstein banking centre
Roadmap 2025 is the multi-year strategy of the Liechtenstein banking centre. It is all about “growth through sustainability and innovation”. Ongoing climate change is one of the greatest global challenges, and while this may be the first generation to sustainably destroy the planet, it is probably the last to prevent it. The financing needed to achieve the Paris climate goals as well as the UN’s broader Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is enormous.
According to PwC, the annual global investment required to achieve the SDGs amounts to $7trn – currently, only one seventh of this is financed by the public sector. A substantial part must therefore come from the private sector. The financial sector and banks in particular can and must therefore play a central role in mobilising and channelling these financial resources. This is a great responsibility, but it also brings with it a great opportunity. If this transformation is successfully accompanied, it will create the necessary growth to continue to create prosperity. Increasing digitalisation has a huge potential to accelerate the needed transformation for the benefit of future generations.
Chief Executive Officer /
www.ns-businesshub.com About the association
The LBA was founded in 1969 and is the voice of Liechtenstein banks at home and abroad. It is one of the most important associations in the country and plays an important role in the successful development of the financial centre. As a member of the European Bankers Federation (EBF), the European Payments Council (EPC) and the European Parliamentary Financial Services Forum (EPFSF), the LBA is an important member of key bodies at a European level and plays an active role within the European legislative process. Since 2017, the LBA has also been a member of the Public Affairs Council (PAC) with offices in Washington and Brussels, and since 2018 it has been a member of the international network Financial Centres for Sustainability (FC4S). With Roadmap 2025, the LBA has placed an even stronger focus on the two major topic of sustainability and digitalisation. As a consequence, the LBA joined world leading initiatives for each area of interest in 2021. Firstly, it became an official supporter of the UN Principles for Responsible Banking (PRB) and the Net-Zero Banking Alliance (NZBA). Secondly, it has also become an affiliate member of the Canada-based Blockchain Research Institute (BRI), an independent global think tank dedicated to inspiring and preparing private and public-sector leaders to be the catalysts of the blockchain transformation.
blockchain and AI. It’s not just about moving with the times, but also about offering customers real added value. By integrating these technologies into the core business and developing new products, businesses can offer more efficient, secure and transparent services. Even though this is a very early stage and many things need to be tried out and experimented with blockchain, tokenisation and AI first. This is not just a gimmick – it shouldn’t be – but an investment in the future. Of course, courage also requires a willingness to invest in these technologies and take the risk of making mistakes. But only through such courage and the acceptance of mistakes as learning opportunities can the industry grow and develop.
fundamentally change the way money and investments are thought about. However, this also means that sustainability and digitalisation are the two key competitive factors that will determine in the medium to long term whether a financial or banking centre or an individual institution will remain competitive at all.
In short, the LBA sees digitalisation and sustainable financing as the future of the financial sector. And that is precisely why it is involved in both areas at all levels at the Bankers Association itself and, above all, why it is looking for the connection, because ‘no sustainability without innovation and no innovation without sustainability’. And the same applies to the various projects it has launched in this area
“AI can be used to analyse energy consumption patterns and make suggestions to increase efficiency. These technologies are, therefore, not only compatible with sustainability but can also help to promote it.”
Role and stance
Digitalisation and sustainability are the two core pillars of the Liechtenstein Bankers Association’s (LBA) banking centre strategy, Roadmap 2025. The association is deeply convinced of the importance and potential of increasing digitalisation and sustainability as well as digitalisation for sustainability. However, this is not easy; it does not happen overnight and of course there is the desire to do it ‘right’. The LBA is, therefore, in a double transformation phase, so to speak. Why? Because the association believes these two factors have the power to
over the past 12 months – from the climate-neutral non-fungible tokens (NFTs for short) to the various collaborations in the blockchain and AI sector. These collaborations and projects in particular allow everyone to learn and experiment. Overall, AI and blockchain have the potential to revolutionise the way everyone thinks about sustainable finance. The LBA wants to help ensure that the financial centre is at the forefront of this revolution and that the future is both digital and sustainable. ●
www.bankenverband.li/en 23
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