Why conflict of interest is the hidden detail holding back nature investment

The document identifies systemic conflicts of interest within nature markets—such as standards and registries being paid per credit issued—as a primary cause for the lack of investor trust and the failure of these markets to scale. It suggests that trust can be restored through radical transparency, structurally independent due diligence paid for by buyers, and a redesign of payment models to remove perverse incentives.

• Nature markets, including the voluntary carbon market (VCM), have struggled to scale due to a lack of trust stemming from widespread conflicts of interest and misaligned incentives. The VCM specifically has remained below approximately $2 billion since its peak in 2021.
• Several systemic conflicts of interest exist within the nature finance ecosystem, including registries paid per credit issued, verification bodies paid by project developers, and developers who author the methodologies or analyze their own project data.
• To build trust and attract capital, the document proposes structural changes: implementing conflict-of-interest notices for transactions, ensuring due diligence is paid for by buyers rather than suppliers, and moving away from per-credit payment models for certifiers and registries.

APA

Duehrkoop, Z. B. T. (2025). Why conflict of interest is the hidden detail holding back nature investment. World Economic Forum. https://www.weforum.org/stories/nature-and-biodiversity/why-conflict-of-interest-is-the-hidden-detail-holding-back-nature-investment/

Chicago

Duehrkoop, Zoe Balmforth, Tim. Why conflict of interest is the hidden detail holding back nature investment. World Economic Forum, 2025. https://www.weforum.org/stories/nature-and-biodiversity/why-conflict-of-interest-is-the-hidden-detail-holding-back-nature-investment/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Duehrkoop |first1=Zoe Balmforth, Tim |title=Why conflict of interest is the hidden detail holding back nature investment |publisher=World Economic Forum |date=22 May 2025 |url=https://www.weforum.org/stories/nature-and-biodiversity/why-conflict-of-interest-is-the-hidden-detail-holding-back-nature-investment/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{duehrkoop2025why, author = {Duehrkoop, Zoe Balmforth, Tim}, title = {{Why conflict of interest is the hidden detail holding back nature investment}}, publisher = {World Economic Forum}, year = {2025}, month = may, url = {https://www.weforum.org/stories/nature-and-biodiversity/why-conflict-of-interest-is-the-hidden-detail-holding-back-nature-investment/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }