In a climate of escalating geopolitical tension and a sharp retreat from green legislation in Washington, Paul Taylor, the newly appointed chair of the Poseidon Principles Association, has issued a staunch defence of maritime transparency.

Writing on LinkedIn, Taylor, who also serves as global head of maritime industries at Societe Generale, acknowledged that the sector is facing a “tough time.” With the recent postponement of the International Maritime Organization’s Net-Zero Framework and the Trump administration’s aggressive rollback of climate standards uncertainty has crept into many shipping boardrooms regarding green initiatives. 

However, Taylor argued that the vacuum in climate policy only makes voluntary, data-driven frameworks more essential. “Delays to regulation… have added to the sense of uncertainty,” Taylor noted. “Yet these challenges do not reduce the importance of transparency or climate alignment. If anything, they reinforce the need for credible frameworks.”

Taylor’s public push is a shot across the bows to lenders and arrangers who may be tempted to shelve climate scrutiny while geopolitics distracts policymakers. 

The Poseidon Principles, launched in 2019, now count 36 major banks and export credit agencies as signatories. These institutions report the climate alignment of their portfolios against the IMO’s 2050 net-zero goals. Taylor pointed to the association’s 2025 annual disclosure report as proof that real-world progress is decoupling from political shifts.

“Importantly, the postponement of global IMO regulation does not affect the relevance or impact of transparency-focused reporting frameworks,” Taylor stated. He emphasised that understanding environmental risks remains “strategically important for the long-term success of the entire shipping sector.”

To maintain momentum, the association has launched a new associate membership category. This allows private equity firms and hedge funds – who are playing an increasingly dominant role in ship finance – to engage with the framework without immediately committing to full portfolio disclosure.