King Charles was greeted with cheers when he opened the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development in London.
Upon his arrival at Canary Wharf, The King was greeted with cheers of “We love you,” before he entered the bank’s new headquarters in London. His visit comes almost 30 years to the day when, while still Prince of Wales, he opened the EBRD’s headquarters in Bishopsgate in 1993.
The Bank’s president, Odile Renaud-Basso, said that it was “an honour to welcome His Majesty to our new home today. His passionate advocacy for sustainable markets and the environment predates our Bank’s existence and has been an inspiration to many in the EBRD regions.”
The EBRD building is one of the United Kingdom’s most environmentally advanced, powered entirely by renewable energy. Its work is now focussed mainly on green economics, as well as inclusion and digitalisation—and the Bank has invested over £160 billion into more than 6,600 projects. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development operates in 36 economies on three continents.
During The King’s visit, he met with staff, senior management, and members of the board and toured the facilities, and also viewed an art exhibit called ‘Kids and Art for Ukraine’.
The art exhibit features artwork by students in Ukraine and all monies from purchased pieces will go towards supporting vulnerable children back in Ukraine with medical, education and humanitarian needs.
The King was presented with a painting of Ukraine and told its young artist that he hoped to someday visit the country. Olga Evans, who works at the EBRD, told reporters after The King’s visit that “He said he wanted to be able to thank the young girl, he also said ‘before I’m too old I want to come and visit your country.’”
The EBRD was founded in 1991 as a response to the end of the Cold War to promote private enterprise for former communist countries in Europe and build open market economies.
