The Big Picture
Siew Meng Tan, regional head of HSBC Private Banking, Asia Pacific, on the future of sustainable business practices and investing in Asia More than ever, companies are increasingly embracing sustainability and embedding ESG principles into the heart of their business strategies and operations. The pandemic has only heightened awareness of sustainability issues and intensified consumer, investor and stakeholder expectations. To meet the Paris Agreement targets, governments, businesses and communities will have to drastically cut their greenhouse gas emissions and become carbon negative. HSBC has made a pledge to reduce financed emissions from our portfolio of customers to net zero by 2050 or sooner, in line with the goals of the Paris Agreement. Achieving net zero can present investors with opportunities that support commercial objectives while also promoting economic growth and a rising standard of living. We expect that sustainable investing is on its way to becoming mainstream. We recognise increasing interest and demand from our clients, as the global race to net zero is rapidly transforming how investors source and select their investment assets.