5 Making Waves in the Regenerative & Sustainable Ocean Economy: Transformative Ocean Investment Opportunities CLIMB ABOARD The Ocean: an engine of environmental protection and economic prosperity Healthy ocean ecosystems are productive assets that compound in value. Ocean degradation increases volatility to supply chains, and contributes to migration, food insecurity and insurance risk. Regenerative ocean investments hedge against climate, economic, and geopolitical risk. A healthy ocean is a stabilizing force in an uncertain world. Traditionally, the Ocean has been considered a vast open- access extractive resource through industries like whaling, fishing, offshore oil drilling, and shipping; or a place in which to dump and hide pollutants and waste. Today, however, and looking forward, we see the Ocean as a powerful prosperity engine. The Ocean is the planet’s largest carbon sink, having absorbed the vast majority (over 90%) of the heat from our emissions, and is a vital hub of biodiversity, being home to 80% of life on Earth. Its currents provide the plumbing for our weather and climate systems. And the Ocean supports a diverse and expanding array of future-facing economic sectors, including renewable energy, food, technology, and resilient natural infrastructure. The ocean economy itself has demonstrated remarkable long-term growth and resilience, doubling in size over the past 30 years to reach a value of USD$2.6 trillion in 2020, and employing over 100 million people 1. It has consistently outpaced the global industry average in real-term growth, and according to the OECD, if it were a country, it would be the fifth largest economy in the world 2. As such, it presents significant investment opportunities across multiple sectors, representing a frontier for innovation, climate adaptation, and sustainable returns. By spotlighting a selection of investment-ready projects and investment vehicles across multiple sectors, this report aims to catalyze a new wave of ocean finance into regenerative and sustainable activities. The reality is that for all their potential, regenerative and sustainable ocean enterprises and projects remain underfunded. Less than 1% of Official Development Assistance is invested into sustainable ocean-related projects 3 and less than 1% of philanthropic capital is dedicated to supporting the regenerative blue economy 4. Yet investments into industry sectors that pollute our seas or extract and destroy marine life run into the trillions. Redirecting these investments and shifting market- distorting perverse subsidies in this sector could yield massive gains very quickly. Research indicates that by 2030, an additional USD$1 trillion of finance could be invested into ‘shovel-ready’ regenerative projects including ocean-based renewable energy, clean shipping, food, and Nature-based Solutions that will help future-proof our planet 5. As such, the transition to a regenerative and sustainable ocean economy offers a strategic long-term financial opportunity. The Blue Economy and Finance Forum, which is being hosted by Monaco in June 2025 as a special meeting of the Third United Nations Ocean Conference, represents a unique opportunity to raise momentum and scale funding towards ocean-positive projects by demonstrating the business cases behind them. To unlock the full potential of ocean-positive solutions, a more systemic, structured approach is needed – one that builds the foundational architecture for ocean finance: a cohesive ecosystem capable of surfacing new investable business models, attracting a broader range of capital, leveraging concessional capital and de-risking tools to accelerate commercial investment. Investing in regenerative solutions that address critical risks such as resource overuse, biodiversity loss, and extreme weather will unlock long-term economic value and catalyze ocean-positive growth for decades to come. Capital providers who have not yet realized that a sustainable ocean economy is a foundation for global resilience and an essential pillar of a regenerative, inclusive, and future-ready economic system, could be “missing the boat”. But opportunities abound and there is still time for them to climb onboard. The opportunity is clear, the momentum is building, and now is the time to act. 1. OECD (2025), The Ocean Economy to 2050, OECD Publishing, Paris 2. Ibid 3. Ibid4. Our Shared Seas: Funding Trends 2023 5. Hoegh-Guldberg & Northrop et al. 2023

Transformative Ocean Investment Opportunities 2025