Former UK Member of Parliament Chuka Umunna has been appointed to one of the most influential positions in the world of sustainable finance.

Chuka has secured the role of Global Head of Sustainable Solutions & EMEA Head of Green Economy Investment Banking at JP Morgan.

It is a significant promotion for Chuka, who was previously leading the bank’s EMEA ESG and green economy banking practice.

What does the job involve?

With climate finance having the potential to contribute trillions of dollars of investment in clean energy and the race to net zero, Chuka’s position at one of the globe’s banking giants is seen as critical.

JPMorgan’s Sustainable Solutions investment bankers provide advice and transaction support to advance sustainability solutions for the firm’s clients.

This includes providing access to sustainability-focused capital across equity, debt and private markets.

Umunna will also oversee JPMorgan’s investment banking for clients in emerging green sectors in Europe, the Middle East and Africa and look after the franchise’s efforts to integrate ESG into its own operations and business activities in the region.

About Chuka Umunna

Chuka is a familiar face in the UK, where he served as a Member of Parliament for Streatham in London for the Labour Party from 2010 to 2019.

Before this, he studied law at the University of Manchester and Nottingham Trent University.

He joined the Labour Party in 1997 and worked as a solicitor in the City of London for Herbert Smith and Rochman Landau.

Chuka was selected as Labour’s parliamentary candidate for Streatham in 2008 and elected an MP in 2010.

His parliamentary service

He was known for being part of the Blue Labour trend, which rejected neoliberal economics, and sat on the Treasury Select Committee until 2011.

Chuka then joined the Shadow Cabinet as Shadow Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills.

He was reelected twice, in 2015 and 2017, but resigned from the Shadow Cabinet in 2015 amid disagreements with the party’s leadership.

Having campaigned for a referendum on the final deal with the EU after the UK’s decision to leave the European Union, in February 2019 Umunna left Labour and jointly formed The Independent Group (later Change UK).

In June 2019, following poor European Parliament election results, he joined the Liberal Democrats and was appointed their Treasury and Business spokesperson.

Two months later, Umunna was made Foreign Affairs, International Development and International Trade spokesperson, but he failed to be reelected to the UK Parliament at the 2019 general election.

From parliament to the world of finance

Since April 2020, Chuka has been a non-executive director of Advanced and an adviser to Digital Identity Net UK.

His move into the world of sustainable finance began in July 2020 when he was appointed executive director and head of the ESG consultancy within the specialist capital markets and financial services team at public relations and marketing consultancy firm Edelman UK.

At the time, he said: "If we're to fundamentally change the model of capitalism we've got to ensure that the overwhelming majority of businesses are integrating ESG factors into corporate decision making like never before.”

On 12 April 2021 he joined investment bank JPMorgan as Managing Director and the EMEA Head of its ESG advisory efforts.

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