Key Takeaways from MIPIM 2025: What Real Asset Investors Need to Know

MIPIM 2025 was a mix of big questions, cautious optimism, and a lot of discussions about where the market is actually heading. Here’s what stood out:

Geopolitics is Weighing Heavy

The market isn’t just moving on interest rates and investment flows – politics is shaping the game too. A lot of conversations centred on US leadership and the ripple effects on real assets. The market wants to know: Will shifting policies deprioritise sustainability? Will capital keep moving as expected? No one has a clear answer, and uncertainty remains a factor.

Market Optimism or Realistic Outlook?

Last year, there was hope that things would bounce back quickly. This year, realism took over. Investors are still waiting for a true market recovery, but the timeline keeps stretching. No one’s expecting a sudden boom – more like a slow climb back to stability.

What Clients Wanted to Know

Across meetings, the same questions kept coming up:

• What are others doing? Investors are looking around, trying to gauge whether they’re ahead, behind, or just treading water.
• What do the CSRD changes mean for us? The proposed new sustainability reporting rules are still a headache, and many are scrambling to get their reporting structures in place. And those that have already started on the CSRD preparation are likely to continue using it as a basis for reporting.
• How should we approach climate risk and transition planning? This has shifted from a theoretical discussion to a pressing business challenge – a topic which came up in almost every conversation.

Who’s Investing in Sustainability?

Sustainability remains on the agenda, but how investors approach it depends on their strategy. Value-add funds are still backing ‘brown to green’ transitions, seeing opportunities in upgrading underperforming assets. But across the board, the biggest challenge isn’t intent – it’s execution.

Data quality continues to be a sticking point. Many investors are rethinking how they collect, verify, and use sustainability data. The shift is clear: reporting for the sake of compliance is losing ground to reporting that actually informs decision-making. The demand for better insights is growing, but so is the frustration with inconsistent data.

Investors know they need to push further to manage long-term risk and protect asset value, but for many, the hardest part is proving the financial case to internal stakeholders. That’s where good data and clear business logic make all the difference.

The Insurance Question

One topic that kept coming up was insurance. Future costs are a growing concern, and climate change is making risk models unpredictable. Investors are starting to realise that sustainability is a key factor in protecting asset value from rising insurance premiums.

The Bottom Line

MIPIM 2025 reinforced what many of us already knew: the market is in a holding pattern, but the pressure to act on sustainability isn’t going away. The challenge for investors isn’t whether to take action, but making sure those actions make financial sense. Those who get that balance right will come out ahead.

So, where does that leave you? If you’re waiting for clear market signals before making a move, you might be waiting a while. The better strategy is to get ahead of the risks now –because those who wait too long could end up paying for it later.

Don’t miss the webinar ‘How Sustainability Is Helping Asset Managers Succeed in a High-Interest Era‘ live webinar by GRESB and EVORA.

Tuesday 8 April 2025
9:00 am PST |  12:00 pm EST | 6:00 pm CET

Gain expert insights from industry leaders on the evolving role of sustainability in real asset investments, and learn actionable strategies to strengthen portfolio resilience and maximise returns.

Register here to join us!