Turning the Tide: A Financier’s Guide to Investing in Blue Carbon Ecosystems

Mangroves, tidal marshes and seagrass meadows underpin climate resilience, coastal economies and biodiversity, but remain critically underfunded. Despite their scale and value, they attract less than 1% of international climate finance.

This guide is for financial institutions seeking to integrate blue carbon ecosystems into their investment strategies. The report outlines four pathways for doing so via sustainability credits, supply chains, infrastructure and insurance. It identifies key barriers such as regulatory complexity, high transaction costs and limited project scale, and outlines eight actionable interventions for financial institutions to unlock investment – from blended finance to risk-sharing tools. Grounded in market realities and community needs, the guide shows how blue carbon can evolve into a scalable investment theme with clear commercial and impact potential.