NATURAL CAPITAL SOLUTIONS
Oceans Finance Company works with governments, local communities and other custodians of ecosystem assets to:
Develop financing solutions that create free cash
Available for the implementation of bespoke on-the-ground measures and actions
Protect identified vulnerable ecosystems
Sustainable development of the blue economy.
OFC’s business model includes mobilising the funding required for these activities. The OFC initiative allows governments to monetise their natural assets at a time when national balance sheets are becoming increasing constrained. Debt is traditionally matched to income and assets, but hitherto assets associated with the ocean economy and natural environment have not been fully recognised or valued appropriately.
OFC builds the link between governments’ responsibly and authority to protect its natural environment and the use of normal financial instruments to leverage assets to obtain short to medium term capital to achieve this. The value of these assets is increased over time through active management.
In essence, OFC effectively provides funding to governments on acceptable terms in a manner that creates a self-funding mechanism to monetise and grow the assets of the Blue Economy and natural environment. Protecting our oceans and other ecosystems using innovating funding mechanisms is the core of what OFC does.
The quid pro quo for the capital provided by OFC is that government implements the necessary framework, authorities and controls over protected areas to enable the benefits of the ecosystem services of these areas.
Government budgets to manage protected areas are typically significantly below what is actually required by the authorities designated to manage these areas. To address this deficit, OFC allocates a portion of the payments it receives from governments to enhance the quality of the management and operations of protected areas.