This month includes news from  ASX, Dhaka, HKEX, SZSE, Shanghai, BNV, Euronext, Nasdaq, JPX, Bursa Malaysa, NSE, FMDQ OTC, Slovenia, SET, Borsa Istanbul, LSE and more. Monthly news highlights are compiled by the SSE to give an overview of the capital markets sustainability news from that month.

 

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SSE INITIATIVE NEWS & EVENTS

Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing joins United Nations partnership program for sustainable capital markets June 1, 2018 Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEX), which has more than 2,200 companies listed on its stock exchange, has become a Partner Exchange of the United Nations Sustainable Stock Exchanges initiative, committing to further promote sustainable and transparent capital markets. SSE contributes to Global Green Finance Leadership Program May 26, 2018 The United Nations Sustainable Stock Exchanges initiative was invited to speak at the inaugural Global Green Finance Leadership Program in Beijing, China. The six-day program included panel discussions and site visits in Beijing, Hizhou and Shanghai, and was developed to provide a platform for knowledge sharing on best practices and inspiring innovation for scaling up green and sustainable finance. SSE presents green finance action plan at IOSCO, World Bank, Malaysia Securities Commission event May 15, 2018 The SSE initiative presented its voluntary green finance action plan at an event at the Malaysian Securities Commission aimed at exploring the use of Islamic Finance to support climate mitigation and adaptation efforts. Slovenia’s stock exchange commits to sustainable markets with the United Nations May 10, 2018 The Ljubljana Stock Exchange in Slovenia has signed a commitment letter supporting the development of sustainable capital markets and signifying its partnership with the United Nations Sustainable Stock Exchanges (SSE) initiative. Exchange in Focus: Bursa Malaysia launches one-stop knowledge hub on corporate governance and sustainability May 9, 2018 Bursa Malaysia, an SSE partner exchange since 2015, recently launched BURSASUSTAIN, a comprehensive online portal designed as a one-stop knowledge and information hub on corporate governance and sustainability. Costa Rica Joins Exchanges Committed to Sustainability with UN SSE Initiative May 8, 2018 The Bolsa Nacional de Valores (BNV) becomes the 73^rd stock exchange committed to promote long-term sustainable investment through the United Nations peer to peer learning platform. EVENT: UN SSE 2018 Global Dialogue October 23, 2018 | Geneva, Switzerland The SSE flagship Global Dialogue is a unique global gathering designed to bring together market leaders to analyze, promote and foster communication on stock exchanges’ sustainability initiatives. You can now find the speaker list for this year's SSE Global Dialogue online here.  

WEBINARS AND EVENTS

5^th International Reporting 3.0 Conference June 12-13, 2018 | Amsterdam This year’s Reporting 3.0 Conference hosted by KPMG will feature final findings from all four Reporting 3.0 Blueprints and will profile pilot projects of companies and others implementing Blueprint Recommendations under the Beta Testing Program.

The Path to SDG Impact: Financing and Collective Impact for the SDGs June 20, 2018 | New York City The UN Global Compact Network USA's annual symposium convenes US-based members of the UN Global Compact with stakeholders from the public sector, civil society, and the United Nations to advance progress on societal goals. Sustainable Business Summit June 20-21, 2018 Bloomberg's Sustainable Business Summits bring together C-suite executives, influential investors, and innovative thought leaders to discuss how companies are using sustainability as a driver of business value. ICGN Annual Conference June 25-28, 2018 | Milan ICGN expects over 450 investors, companies and capital market stakeholders from around the world. The Future of ESG Reporting July 10, 2018 | New York City Featuring the latest trends and effective, multidisciplinary strategies to incorporate non-financial data into traditional reporting standards. Ceres will present findings from a forthcoming report benchmarking disclosure practices of the largest 500 companies on the global Forbes list. Register here. PRI in Person 2018 September 12-14, 2018 | San Francisco, USA PRI in Person is the leading global conference on responsible investment, offering a platform for PRI signatories and other investment professionals to learn, network and collaborate in person over a three day period. The annual event allows attendees to discuss topical issues and share experiences from their own organisation and region with peers from around the world. UNCTAD World Investment Forum 2018 October 22-25, 2018 | Geneva, Switzerland Established in 2008, the UNCTAD World Investment Forum (WIF) is the pre-eminent global forum for investment policy-making. It is a platform for multi-stakeholder dialogue on investment in sustainable development and strives to achieve actionable outcomes for the world’s investment related challenges. Registration is now open here, and find the preliminary programme here.  

CONSULTATIONS

Better Reporting call for evidence Deadline: June 30, 2018 The Better Reporting Implementation Task Force, commissioned by the UK Prime Minister, is providing leadership to develop clear options for organisations to coalesce towards a harmonised approach for reporting their impact on people and planet. Climate Bonds Initiative opens new consultation on new land conservation and restoration  Deadline: July 20, 2018 Comments are being sought on new sectors under the Climate Bonds Standard. ASX: Consultation on proposed 4th edition of the corporate governance principles and recommendations Deadline: July 27, 2018 The ASX Corporate Governance Council is consulting on proposals to update and issue a fourth edition of its Corporate Governance Principles and Recommendations. The closing date for submissions is July 27, 2018.  

GENERAL NEWS

Nigerian Stock Exchange celebrates World Environment Day, creates awareness on the menace of plastic pollution June 5, 2018 NSE held a clean- up programme to commemorate the 2018 World Environment Day, in collaboration with RecyclePoints and the Cleaner Lagos Initiative of the Lagos State Government, on Tuesday June 5, 2018. Nigerian OTC exchange partners to launch Nigeria Green Bond Market Development Program June 4, 2018 FMDQ OTC, a Nigerian OTC exchange partnered with the Climate Bonds Initiative and the Financial Sector Deepening Africa to launch the Nigerian Green Bond Market Development Programme (NGBMD). Publication of Japan's revised Corporate Governance Code June 1, 2018 Tokyo Stock Exchange, Inc. (TSE) has partially revised the Securities Listing Regulations pertaining to the revision of Japan's Corporate Governance Code. Nasdaq Helsinki launches sustainable bond market and welcomes first green bond issuer May 31, 2018 Nasdaq announced that Nasdaq Helsinki is launching a new sustainable bond market segment on the Main Market. The first green bond issuer is Municipality Finance Plc (MuniFin). Nigeria and London host NSE-LSE Dual Listing Conference focused on sustainable development May 31, 2018 The Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), in partnership with London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) hosted the 5th edition of the NSE-LSE Dual Listing Conference in Lagos with the theme "Attracting Global Capital to Drive Nigeria's Economic Reforms and Sustainable Growth Development." Borsa Istanbul releases its first integrated report May 25, 2018 In November 2017, Borsa İstanbul and International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC) signed a collaboration agreement which aims to increase the adoption of integrated reporting in Turkey. Borsa İstanbul’s 2017 Integrated Annual Report has been presented to its stakeholders online at www.borsaistanbul.com. EU proposes measures to advance green finance market May 24, 2018 The Commission delivered concrete proposals for a unified taxonomy on environmentally sustainable investments; investors’ duties and disclosures; low-carbon benchmarks; and better advice to clients on sustainability. Shenzhen Stock Exchange issues Q&A on Poverty Alleviation Corporate Bonds May 23, 2018 The Q&A clarifies the specific institutional arrangements of the SZSE bond market to support precise poverty alleviation. WFE survey: 90% of exchanges embracing sustainability initiatives May 23, 2018 The World Federation of Exchanges (WFE) has published its fourth annual Environment, social and governance (ESG) survey of member exchanges, which shows nearly 90% are embracing sustainability initiatives. China stock regulator vows more environment focus, green finance May 21, 2018 China's securities regulator said it will work to strengthen the environmental responsibilities of listed companies, promote green finance and focus more on environmental issues when reviewing initial public offerings or mergers. Exchange in Bangladesh partners with GRI for capacity building May 21, 2018 The Dhaka Stock Exchange Limited of Bangladesh has entered a deal with Global Reporting Initiative to build capacity, expand trainings to listed companies and promote ESG performance. Hong Kong exchange reviews listed issuers’ implementation of ESG reporting guide May 18, 2018 The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEX), published the findings of its review of listed issuers' ESG reports. IOSCO launches sustainability information-sharing network May 10, 2018 The International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) agreed at its annual meeting to set up an information-sharing network among member regulators “to gain insight into the issues around sustainability, including the details of issuer disclosure and its relevance to investor decision making.” Malaysia Securities Commission outlines plans for green Islamic finance in ESG podcast May 9, 2018 Zainal Izlan Zainal Abidin of Securities Commission Malaysia speaks about the country's strategy for socially responsible and sharia-compliant investing in a two-part series. Listen to Part II here. Stock Exchange of Thailand launches platform for startups and SMEs May 4, 2018 “LiVE” – the first Thailand crowdfunding platform for startups and SMEs developed by The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) with support from the public and private sectors – has officially launched with eight targeted businesses from various sectors such as mobile application, consumer products and medical equipment, to join while prompting over 50 companies to follow suit amid growing enthusiasm from investors. SET President, Kesara Manchusree, writes about this new platform in the May edition of the WFE focus here. Shanghai's vision and action plan for supporting green development and promoting green finance (2018-2020) issued April 25, 2018 The "Vision and Action Plan" will coordinate and guide all tasks at the Shanghai exchange as well as provide strong support for the development of China's green finance system.  

ESG INDICES AND PRODUCTS

FTSE4Good semi-annual review June 6, 2018 FTSE Russell announced changes to the FTSE4Good index series, following the June 2018 semi-annual review. The review can be found here. Amundi launches socially responsible dollar ETF May 30, 2018 The fund applies environmental, social and governance selection filters, meaning it excludes issuers involved in alcohol, tobacco, military weapons, gambling, adult entertainment, and nuclear power. Euronext and Vigo Eiris Paris publish half-year review of ESG indices May 23, 2018 Seven Euronext Vigeo Eiris ESG indices were reviewed. DWS issues four new ESG ETFs May 17, 2018 DWS, the asset management arm of Deutsche Bank, is launching a new range of ESG ETFs under its ‘Xtrackers’ brand, providing exposure to ESG-filtered equity indices tracking global, US, Japanese and European markets Lyxor expands suite of ESG Trend Leaders ETFs May 16, 2018 Lyxor has launched three new sustainability-focused ETFs, providing exposure to equities in the eurozone, the US and globally. Australian ETP market driven by sustainability products May 11, 2018 Australia's exchange-traded product (ETP) market has grown to A$36.6 billion under management at the end of March, thanks to the growth in sustainability-focused products, according to Morningstar. Morningstar to revamp sustainability ratings May 10, 2018 Morningstar is to change its sustainability ratings methodology, which allows investors to evaluate funds based on the sustainability profile of their underlying holdings, by the end of the year. Trucost launches evaluation tool to help investors align ESG strategies with UN SDGs May 9, 2018 Trucost, part of S&P Dow Jones Indices, has launched the Trucost SDG Evaluation Tool to help enable companies to identify business risks and opportunities aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The Luxembourg Green Exchange opens up to SRI funds May 3, 2018 The Luxembourg Stock Exchange expands beyond green bonds to list social and sustainable bonds and 11 SRI funds.  

MANAGEMENT NEWS

New York Stock Exchange gets its first female president May 26, 2018 Chief Operating Officer Stacey Cunningham has been promoted to lead NYSE as its first female president, replacing Thomas Farley. New York-based stock exchange IEX makes two new appointments May 23, 2018 New York-based stock exchange IEX Group Inc appointed Sara Furber chief financial officer and Dan Cummings head of corporate advisory, which includes overseeing the company’s listings business.