HSBC enters partnership to drive ESG revolution for Hong Kong businesses

HSBC enters partnership to drive ESG revolution for Hong Kong businesses | Insurance Business Asia

Environmental

HSBC enters partnership to drive ESG revolution for Hong Kong businesses

ESG factors becoming increasingly important in procurement, study found

Environmental

By
Roxanne Libatique

HSBC has partnered with Dun & Bradstreet (D&B), a global provider of business decision data and analytics, to support Hong Kong businesses in enhancing their resilience and competitive edge through environmental, social, and governance (ESG) reporting.

HSBC will refer interested clients to the D&B ESG Registered service, which helps businesses demonstrate their adherence to global ESG standards. Eligible clients can also benefit from reduced service fees.

Enhancing ESG competitiveness

The collaboration focuses on aiding smaller enterprises in identifying relevant ESG issues, understanding applicable frameworks, and gathering necessary data for reporting.

Encouraging ESG reporting among Hong Kong businesses aims to foster trust-based relationships within the business ecosystem, including customers, suppliers, and investors.

Upon completing an industry-benchmarked ESG self-assessment, businesses receive an ESG rating, data performance indicators, and the D&B ESG Registered badge, allowing them to showcase their ESG credentials. The self-assessment aligns with standards like SASB, GRI, and the UN SDGs, which are essential for both domestic and international operations.

Importance of ESG factors in procurement

Dun & Bradstreet’s Q1 2024 Global Business Optimism Insights report highlighted the increasing importance of ESG factors in procurement, indicating the need for companies to deepen their understanding and resources in ESG reporting.

Following an HSBC Sustainability Roundtable event on April 18, where D&B shared ESG insights with participants from the consumer goods manufacturing sector, several HSBC clients enrolled in the D&B ESG Registered program.

Strengthening ESG awareness

Andrew Wu, general manager of D&B China, expressed his support for the partnership.

“We are privileged to collaborate with a pre-eminent bank such as HSBC in Hong Kong to deliver ESG awareness and solutions for the local business community. This initiative will enable local businesses to understand and disclose their ESG performance in accordance with international standards, which is becoming increasingly critical for businesses to gain a competitive edge. This is particularly important when it comes to engaging with investors, financiers, clients, and all stakeholders,” he said.

D&B’s Data Cloud includes information on over 550 million organisations globally, with ESG data on nearly 80 million public and private businesses, including over 90,000 in Hong Kong. The ESG rankings are divided into 13 themes and 31 categories, based on data from trusted global sources. This coverage helps businesses understand the connection between analytics and performance and benchmark their ESG data against global peers.

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