Green and sustainable finance team to tackle climate risks

Since the signing of the Paris Agreement by the United Nations in 2015 and China’s announcement of its carbon peak by 2030, James Poon, country manager for China and Hong Kong at ING, stated that in terms of talent management, there is a need to prioritise expanding ING’s global green and sustainable finance team to address global climate risks. 

He mentioned that discussions around green and sustainable finance were scarce eight or nine years ago, but ING committed to supporting these initiatives and promoted professionalisation internally. Due to the scarcity of talent with green finance knowledge at the time, ING first set up a Sustainable Finance team in Europe, which was then quickly followed by a team in the Asia-Pacific region. He said, “This is a global issue, and it requires a global solution.” 

In 2017, Philips and ING signed a EUR 1 billion sustainability-linked loan in the Netherlands, pioneering the linkage between a company’s environmental, social, and governance (ESG) ratings and loan terms. Sustainability-linked loans have gradually been adopted worldwide since then. 

Sustainability-linked loans provide low-carbon transformation of enterprises 

James added that in Europe and Asia, including China, ING has adopted a science-based approach to ensure that companies in seven major industries, including financial institutions, logistics, transportation, infrastructure, and healthcare, can accelerate their transition to green and low-carbon development. ING also has separate plans and targets to support companies during the transformation.  

The process of promoting professionalisation in the Asia-Pacific region requires a transition period. About six to seven years ago, ING already encouraged its employees to participate in and learn more about green and sustainable finance topics, including through the launch of E-learning and Short-term Assignment (STA) programs. James said that some employees who participated in the STA program were very satisfied with their new positions and were optimistic about their employment prospects, eventually deciding to change their roles. 

James noted that green and sustainable finance, as well as ESG issues, have become the focus of attention for global business leaders, and ING’s talent team also needs to further expand in response to these trends. 

Originally published in Hong Kong Economic Times: Opens in a new tabhttps://paper.hket.com/article/3769116