Podcast Series – Industries in Transition
A look at the challenges, triumphs and lessons learned as businesses drive change to build a sustainable future.
Seaweed is making waves
How is seaweed farming making waves in sustainability and is there enough scale to have a material impact on climate change? In this episode, Eugene Klerk (Global Head of ESG Research, Standard Chartered) and Hannah Jones, (CEO, The Earthshot Prize) share insights into the role that seaweed can play in the fight against global warming and the associated investment opportunities.
The Adaptation Economy
According to the IMF, in any given year since 2000, climate disasters have killed more than 2,600 people, affected 7 million others, and caused USD2 billion in direct material damage. This economic impact of climate change shows how adaptation policies have become a pressing priority. It underscores the need for international support to finance adaptation.
To learn more, please listen to the podcast below.
Asia’s wakeup call
According to a report produced by Verisk Maplecroft in 2021, 99 of the top 100 cities most at risk to a range of environmental and climate-related threats are in Asia.
This episode focuses on the urgent need for cities in Asia in particular, to fast track their green plans.
To learn more, please listen to the podcast below.
Introducing Climate Impact X
In May 2021, together with DBS Bank, the Singapore Exchange (SGX) and Temasek, we announced our intention to take climate action through a joint venture called Climate Impact X (CIX). CIX aims to be a global exchange and marketplace for high-quality carbon credits and will leverage satellite monitoring, machine learning and blockchain technology to enhance the transparency, integrity and quality of carbon credits that deliver tangible and lasting environmental impact.
In this podcast, we gathered Daniel Hanna, Global Head of Sustainable Finance at Standard Chartered, Mikkel Larsen, Chief Sustainability Officer at DBS and interim CEO of CIX, Herry Cho, Head of Sustainability & Sustainable Finance at SGX and Neo Gim Huay, Managing Director, Climate Change Strategy at Temasek to discuss the fundamentals of carbon offsets, how CIX will work, the challenges, and the opportunities for companies to participate. They also share about their motivations for the partnership as well as what success would look like for this global exchange.
The podcast is produced by Bloomberg Media Studios in partnership with Standard Chartered.
To learn more, please listen to the podcast below.
Capturing the carbon opportunity
America has re-joined the Paris Agreement on limiting global warming to one and a half degrees Celsius by 2030. Meanwhile, China, the world’s biggest consumer of coal has committed to carbon neutrality by 2060. Many countries and corporations are on similar pathways, but even if everyone is headed in the same direction, are they on the fastest and most effective track?
One of the ways to reduce carbon emissions is through carbon markets, by setting a price on emissions and enabling the trading of emission units. But how do carbon markets actually work? And are they the answer to the global drive to net zero?
In this podcast, Chris Leeds, Executive Director, Commodity Origination at Standard Chartered, explains the economics of carbon markets and discusses its impact in emerging markets and beyond.
The podcast is produced by Bloomberg Media Studios in partnership with Standard Chartered
To learn more, please listen to the podcast below.
A Conversation with Bill Winters: Sustainability and Resilience in the Face of Disruption
Turbulent. Chaotic. Disruptive. There are many ways that we’ll remember 2020, but according to Bill Winters, Group Chief Executive of Standard Chartered, one word captures it best: resilient. Few escaped the socioeconomic turmoil of Covid-19. While some were harder hit, most had to pivot to survive. Against this backdrop, businesses around the world had to re-examine their core values and decide what matters most. For Standard Chartered, a relentless focus on sustainability topped the list.
In this podcast, Bill Winters discusses the lessons learnt in 2020 and Standard Chartered’s ambitions in the sustainable finance space. Through the challenges and opportunities, he explores what the future holds and how the bank has greater impetus than ever to make good on its commitment to close the sustainability gap in emerging markets and beyond.
The podcast is produced by Bloomberg Media Studios in partnership with Standard Chartered
To learn more, please listen to the podcast below.
Investing for impact
Financial institutions have an important role to play in using their capabilities to promote economic and social development in a sustainable way. The challenge to date has been how to measure the impact sustainable finance projects are making.
Against this backdrop, Standard Chartered has launched its first Sustainable Finance Impact Report. We have gathered and analysed data that helps us quantify the impact of the EUR 500m Sustainability Bond of July 2019 and we are for the first time able to disclose the USD 3.9bn of Sustainable Assets that are aligned to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in our Sustainable Finance portfolio. These include loans to renewable energy, healthcare, education as well as Microfinance and SME lending in low-income countries.
The good news is that we are having impact where it matters most, with 91% of our sustainable finance assets located in emerging markets and 86% are in some of the world’s least developed nations. Our network means that we are providing finance in emerging markets where the need for funding as a positive catalyst for change is greatest, for example, financing a solar project in India will help avoid more than seven times the CO2 from a similar-sized project in France, given the current sources of power on those countries’ grids.
In this second podcast, Daniel Hanna, Global Head of Sustainable Finance, shares some of the key highlights of the report and emphasises the need to switch the focus from green bond league tables to how we catalyse, standardise and democratise sustainable finance.
While the growth of sustainable finance has been encouraging, Daniel also points out that impact matters just as much as volume and that such reports provide investors with the long-needed transparency on the impact of sustainable finance assets.
The podcast is produced by Bloomberg Media Studios in partnership with Standard Chartered
To learn more, please listen to the podcast below.
The role of the private sector in a time of crisis
The Covid-19 pandemic has brought the global economy to a standstill, pushed hospitals and healthcare facilities to their limits and led to unprecedented changes in the way we conduct business.
The private sector has played a vital role in addressing some of the biggest challenges stemming from the Covid-19 pandemic. As companies step up to help in the global fight, Standard Chartered has committed USD1 billion worth of not-for-profit financing for companies looking to ramp up production or start manufacturing personal protective equipment.
In the first podcast of the series, Simon Cooper, CEO of Corporate, Commercial and Institutional Banking, discusses the bank’s contribution to combat the Covid-19 pandemic and the role that the private sector must play at this critical moment of need.
Our clients, Dr Bildard Baguma from Joint Medical Store and CEO Christoph Michalski from Vinda Household Paper, share about how their partnerships with Standard Chartered have enabled them to make a meaningful contribution amid the pandemic.
The podcast is produced by Bloomberg Media Studios in partnership with Standard Chartered
Listen to the podcast below.
This is how we are helping to fund the fight against COVID-19
From helping a drinks manufacturer pivot to producing hand sanitisers in Ghana, to enabling a hygiene company to manufacture face masks in China, our USD1billion financing commitment is making a difference where it is needed most. And since the crisis isn’t over yet, we will continue financing projects in future – to have an even greater impact.
Industries in Transition
With topics around urban transformation, energy transition, the future of transport and critical infrastructure across Asia, Africa and the Middle East, the campaign will unearth fresh trends and showcase how we are supporting clients towards a more sustainable and inclusive future.