International Group For Sustainable Finance

About us

Context

Continuous mutation of economic
and financial systems

In an environment of permanent evolution of economic and financial systems, the successive crises of recent years have profoundly transformed the global landscape, its codes and its practices. These crises, increasingly frequent, are marked by their intensity and regularity, revealing the growing vulnerability of markets. Globalization, while carrying major opportunities through the opening of markets and the fluidity of exchanges, also acts as an ambivalent vector by constituting a factor of fragility.
Indeed, the mechanisms of globalization are accompanied by a proliferation of economic and financial operators. This multiplication of players complicates the readability of markets and increases the risk of confusion between actors, with different and variable profiles and commitments. This phenomenon, coupled with the growing interdependence and interconnectivity of operators, amplifies the propagation effects of abuses and pushes regulators to organize themselves by strengthening control mechanisms capable of limiting and preventing excesses, and thus containing systemic risks. All of these reasons call for increased structuring or restructuring of markets.

Key challenges

The establishment of normative frameworks, as indices and benchmarks for differentiation, but also as control mechanisms, constitutes a structuring response to these challenges. This makes it possible to clarify positions and identify trusted operators, while ensuring regulation and supervision based on transparency and traceability.
As early as 1947, the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) embraced this dynamic and took the lead in this change, joined since then by several committed organizations that have come in support and participate in this collective effort to contribute to and consolidate a structured and coherent international normative framework. IGSF is one of these organizations, with the vocation of structuring, formalizing and disseminating best practices in financial and extra-financial matters. The organization contributes to strengthening the quality, readability and security of markets, addressing the dual challenge of differentiation and control.
IGSF thus works toward the individual development and the bringing together of stakeholders within a shared ecosystem, while also providing answers to two major concerns of economic actors regarding their ability to: on the one hand, support their collaboration choices on objective and verifiable criteria; and on the other hand, structure their management system on the basis of frameworks aligned with international best practices.

In response

The creation of normative frameworks constitutes an essential response to the challenges of differentiation and control affecting today’s markets. These frameworks serve not only as benchmarks for identifying trusted actors, but also as regulatory mechanisms based on transparency, traceability and compliance. Since 1947, the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) has played a central role in this dynamic, progressively supported by other organizations that contribute to building a coherent, reliable and structured international normative framework.

IGSF is one of these committed organizations. Its mission is to structure, formalize and disseminate best practices in financial and extra-financial domains. Through the development of certifiable standards and rigorous certification processes, it contributes to improving the clarity, quality and security of markets. IGSF also provides concrete responses to the concerns of economic actors, offering them tools to:

  • Base their partnership and collaboration choices on objective, measurable and verifiable criteria.

  • Organize and strengthen their management system by drawing on frameworks aligned with international best practices.

Role & mission

Structuring standards and disseminating best practices for excellence in financial governance

IGSF works primarily around two major axes: the technical organization of standards for their dissemination and the support and promotion of best practices in financial and extra-financial governance. In this capacity, IGSF participates in, organizes or co-organizes scientific committees, seminars and conferences in support of the NGO’s preferred themes.

The topics covered within and by IGSF address in particular the challenges of financial governance, financial security, the fight against financial crime, and the corporate social responsibility of organizations of all types.

The Luxembourg-based organization advocates for the establishment of a strong culture of compliance within ecosystems and the entities that compose them. Adherence to the principles and values of best practices is a virtuous cycle at the heart of decision-making systems, fostering a structured framework of trust and exchange between the various stakeholders of an ecosystem.

IGSF champions and advocates for sustainable finance as a source of business development, stability and global security.

President of IGSF

Véronique De la Bachelerie

Véronique De la Bachelerie held senior executive positions for over 30 years within the Société Générale Group, notably as CEO of Société Générale Luxembourg, CEO of Société Générale Consulting, Chief Financial Officer of the retail banking division, and Group Chief Accounting Officer. She is a member of the Group’s Shareholders’ Consultative Committee.

In her capacity as head of Société Générale Consulting, Ms. De la Bachelerie supported major transformation programs within the Société Générale Group, including the implementation of the Group-wide “ESG by Design” project.

Ms. De la Bachelerie has also served as a member of the Boards of Directors of mid-sized companies, including the Luxembourg Stock Exchange and Axway, a subsidiary of Sopra Steria.

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Vision 2025-2030

In a complex world, in constant evolution and where challenges are ever-present, IGSF advocates for compliance with international standards of good governance in order to adapt to change and meet the challenges of tomorrow.

Through its activities, IGSF thus pursues several strategic axes:

  • Promoting a culture of ethics, rigor and transparency.
  • Facilitating the interoperability of economic actors through specific benchmarks and methodologies.

  • Contributing directly to the research and development of new decision-making tools to address current and future challenges in financial and extra-financial compliance.

Véronique De la Bachelerie
Bodies

Members of the Executive Board

The members of the IGSF executive board constitute the body responsible for steering and coordinating normalization efforts and the dissemination of standards, ensuring their alignment with prevailing international professional and sectoral standards.

Isabelle Schoonwater

Scientific committee representative

She is a judge within the French judicial system, an academic, and a graduate of the French National School for the Judiciary. Ms. Schoonwater has held numerous positions within the judicial system, both on the bench and in the prosecution service, primarily in criminal matters, notably as an investigating judge at the Paris Financial Unit, then as counselor and later presiding judge, in particular at the Paris Court of Appeal, in chambers dedicated to combating organized crime and terrorism.

Isabelle Schoonwater was seconded to the Ministry of Finance within the French financial intelligence unit (TRACFIN), where, as the only judge, she was notably in charge of the international department. She was then recruited by the World Bank in Washington, D.C., within the unit dedicated to combating money laundering and the financing of terrorism (Senior Financial Sector Specialist, IFC).

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Dr. Rama Cont

Scientific committee representative

He is Chair of Financial Mathematics at the University of Oxford. Rama Cont is also a Research Director at the CNRS (French National Centre for Scientific Research), Director of the “Systemic Resilience” Programme at the Oxford Martin School, and Director within the EPSRC (Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council) in the United Kingdom.

Previously, he also held the Chair of Financial Mathematics at Imperial College London and has taught at other leading academic institutions such as Columbia University and École Polytechnique in France.

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Virginie Heem

Scientific committee representative

Virginie Heem has built her career at the intersection of tax law and financial regulation. A graduate of Paris I Panthéon-Sorbonne University, she began her career within the French tax administration, where she developed over more than ten years a strong expertise in taxation, tax litigation, and regulatory framework development.

She started in local tax offices, before moving into legal services, and later joined the Directorate of National and International Tax Audits, where she was responsible for tax litigation related to banking institutions. She then joined the Tax Legislation Directorate, where she contributed to the analysis of complex cases and to the drafting of legal texts and tax doctrine.

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Alexandre Rambaud

Scientific committee representative

He holds a PhD in mathematics and management sciences. He is an Associate Professor at AgroParisTech (the French National Institute for Life and Environmental Sciences and Industries), where he co-directs the “Ecological Accounting” Chair (AgroParisTech Foundation), and is a researcher at CIRED (International Research Center on Environment and Development).

He also co-directs the “Double Materiality” Chair (Risk Foundation) and is an Academic Fellow of the Institut Louis Bachelier, as well as a member of the Scientific Council of the PARC Foundation (Paris Agreement Research Commons).

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