This month includes news from GPW, JPX, LSEG, NYSE, TMX 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
UN SSE welcomes The Bermuda Stock Exchange (BSX)14 May 2021
The Bermuda Stock Exchange (BSX) has solidified its commitment to transparency and sustainability by becoming a member of the UN Sustainable Stock Exchanges initiative. The SSE’s newest member joins a network of 103 stock exchanges around the world that are committed to promoting sustainable development.
New SSE Publication:
How Derivatives Exchanges can Promote Sustainable Development – An Action Menu05 May 2021
The UN SSE initiative has launched a new guidance for derivatives exchanges prepared in collaboration with the World Federation of Exchanges (WFE), the global industry group for exchanges. The joint report provides guidance on "How Derivatives Exchanges can Promote Sustainable Development - An Action Menu". The document was produced by an international Advisory Group made up of derivatives and stock exchange representatives and experts as well as experts from the wider ecosystem.
ICGN Governance of Sustainability DialogueUpcoming event: 23 June 2021
The SSE Initiative is proud to announce the Governance of Sustainability Dialogue, in partnership with ICGN and hosted by UNCTAD World Investment Forum. We are delighted to assemble these influential networks for two days of discussion and debate focused on global sustainability issues and risk management to develop long-term strategies, reporting and cooperation. Register here.
Climate Disclosure: Launch of New UN SSE Model Guidance & Action PlanUpcoming event: 29 June 2021
SSE initiative will launch the new “Model Guidance on Climate Disclosure” for exchanges to assist their issuers to implement the recommendations of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosure (TCFD). The SSE will also be launching a companion tool, an Action Plan “How stock exchanges can make markets climate resilient”. The Action Plan was developed alongside the Model Guidance to support stock exchanges in their efforts to further enhance market-wide climate resiliency. Register here.
STOCK EXCHANGE NEWS
LGX welcomes EUR 800m green bond by China Construction Bank07 May 2021
In a virtual Ring the Bell ceremony held today in the presence of Claude Marx, Director General of Luxembourg’s financial supervisory authority CSSF, the Luxembourg Stock Exchange (LuxSE) and China Construction Bank (CCB) celebrated the listing of CCB’s latest green bond issued through the bank’s Luxembourg branch.
PRI and the LSEG: the investor guide to climate collaboration from COP26 to net zero08 May 2021
The PRI and the London Stock Exchange Group: the investor guide to climate collaboration from COP26 to net zero. The institutions outline the collaborative initiatives, frameworks and tools, which investors can use to structure action on climate change, and develop consensus on best practice.
TMX Group Releases 2020 Environmental, Social and Governance Report
13 May 2021
TMX Group has released its second annual Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Report, detailing the company's progress in integrating sustainability practices into its corporate strategy, business processes and investment decisions.
Japan Exchange Group: ESG disclosure at Japanese companies is gaining pace17 May 2021
JPX has been working to encourage the spread of ESG investment in Japan for a number of years, having become a member of the Sustainable Stock Exchanges Initiative in December 2017. From the beginning this has involved both activities aimed at investors, for example the provision of ESG-related products, and those aimed at listed companies.
Luxembourg Green Exchange hits 1,000 sustainable bonds19 May 2021
The Luxembourg Stock Exchange (LuxSE) celebrated the exchange’s achievement of 1000 bonds on the Luxembourg Green Exchange (LGX). EIB’s recent 10-year USD 1.5 billion Global Climate Awareness Bond is the 1,000th bond on one of the world's largest platforms for securities with a focus on sustainability, and the latest addition to the more than 50 green and sustainability bonds issued by EIB and currently displayed on LGX.
LSEG appoints David Harris new head of sustainable product as demand for ESG rises20 May 2021
The London Stock Exchange Group has appointed a new head of its sustainable product team to drive its journey to more sustainable investment. David Harris originally joined FTSE in 2002 and has since implemented several sustainable initiatives including LSEG’s development of ESG disclosure and reporting guidance models for its listed companies.
GPW Publishes ESG reporting Guidelines20 May 2021
The Warsaw Stock Exchange in partnership with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development has published the ESG reporting Guidelines, an ESG reporting manual for listed issuers which structures and organises relevant guidelines and recommendations.
Mongolian Stock Exchange: ESG Standards into the Mongolian Capital Markets23 May 2021
Webinar on 'Introducing Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Standards into the Mongolian Capital Markets' has been jointly organised by the Mongolian Stock Exchange (MSE), Financial Regulatory Commission (FRC), Mongolian Sustainable Finance Association (MSFA), UN Environment Programme (UNEP), Financial Centres for Sustainability (FC4S), International Finance Corporation (IFC) and UN Joint Programme, within the Mongolian Sustainable Stock Exchange Initiative.
HKEX’s new chief to keep connecting China with the world’s markets and focus on sustainability25 May 2021
Hong Kong will provide Chinese investors with financial products and the platform to sharpen its role as the gateway between the world’s second-largest economy and the global capital markets, said Nicolas Aguzin, the new chief executive of the Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEX).
SGX and Partners take climate action through global carbon exchange and marketplace25 May 2021
Singapore Exchange (SGX), DBS Bank (DBS), Standard Chartered bank and Temasek Holdings (a Singaporean state owned holding company) announced their intention to join forces to take climate action. Through a joint venture to be established by the four parties, Climate Impact X (CIX) aims to be a global exchange and marketplace for high-quality carbon credits.
Johannesburg Stock Exchange: South Africa’s prospects25 May 2021
Johannesburg Stock Exchange CEO Leila Fourie tells Swaha Pattanaik how South Africa’s economy has coped with Covid-19. In an interview recorded for the International Economic Forum of the Americas, she also flags sectors that will rebound fastest and discusses ESG investing.
Costa Rica Exchange Lists First Green Bonds27 May 2021
The Costa Rica Stock Exchange (Bolsa Nacional de Valores) has announced the first public offering of green bonds that will be fully placed in the local market. The resources will be used to refinance green credit lines, specifically related to renewable energy, energy efficiency and water management projects.
NYSE Publishes ESG Disclosure Guidance28 May 2021
The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) joins a group of now 60 stock exchanges around the world that have written guidance on ESG reporting. NYSE recently published its ESG Guidance: Best Practices for Sustainability, which will assist companies with ESG disclosure by highlighting key elements of good quality reporting and drawing attention to useful resources, including those provided by the NYSE.
REGULATOR AND STANDARD SETTER NEWS
IFC and Ghana’s Securities and Exchange Commission to Develop Green Bonds Market05 May 2021
IFC and Ghana's Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) today announced a partnership to facilitate investments in projects that address climate and environmental issues through green bonds. Under the agreement, IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, will help the SEC develop guidelines for issuers and investors for green bonds in Ghana.
ECB's Lagarde calls for green capital markets union06 May 2021
Europe needs to develop a “green” capital market union to generate cash for sustainable investment and remain the location of choice for investors issuing green debt, European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde.
Canadian Fed launch council on sustainable finance12 May 2021
Canada has launched a council on sustainable finance, the federal government said in a release. The Sustainable Finance Action Council will bring together public- and private-sector financial expertise to support the growth of sustainable finance.
New Zealand Government Introduces World-First Climate-Reporting Disclosure Laws12 May 2021
The New Zealand government introduced an omnibus bill into parliament, aiming to introduce mandatory requirements for businesses in the financial sector to disclose the impacts of climate change on themselves and develop strategies to manage climate change risks and opportunities.
Egyptian Regulator elected to Chair IOSCO Growth and Emerging Markets Committee17 May 2021
Dr. Mohamed Omran, Chairman of Egypt's Financial Regulatory Authority (FRA), was elected the Chairman of the Growth and Emerging Markets Committee (GEM), the largest Committee within the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO), representing over 75% of the IOSCO's ordinary membership.
CDSB Framework: How can companies better report on environmental risks19 May 2021
Findings show a deep misalignment between sustainability reports and mainstream findings, indicating the need for an improved understanding of risk. Recent years have witnessed profound changes in how businesses around the world understand the risks they face and what actions are necessary to better manage them.
U.S. SPACs target more ESG companies in 202120 May 2021
Companies with environmental, social and governance (ESG) credentials have been high on the list of merger targets for U.S. special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs) so far in 2021, data from Nomura Greentech showed.
SASB Supports SEC Action to Promote Decision-Useful ESG Disclosure20 May 2021
SASB submitted a response to the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s request for input on climate change disclosure. The SEC’s consultation signals a commitment to give serious consideration to whether and how regulation might more effectively address the information needs of 21st century investors.
Turkey preparing framework as it may issue its first sovereign green bond21 May 2021
The Turkish government is working on legal requirements that will enable it to raise money by selling debt tied to environmental performance, according to an unconfirmed report. Many domestic companies turn to green bond issuances linked to sustainability measures in order to fund their projects.
The EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive Proposal: What Companies Need to Know21 May 2021
The CSRD proposal requires companies to prepare management reports and financial statements in the European Single Electronic Format (“ESEF” / “XHTML”), which will incorporate a tagging system for sustainability information using a taxonomy that is yet to be developed.
Pakistan plans to raise $500mln from first green bond sale22 May 2021
Pakistan plans to raise $500 million next week with the sale of a debut green bond that may lead the way for similar deals from the nation to fund hydroelectric projects, Bloomberg reported on Friday.
The Center for Sustainability and Excellence held an event on “How ESG disclosures can support Investors’ decisions and a more Sustainable Economy. The need for a common ESG framework.” bringing together in a high level discussion the U.S. SEC, ESG Rating Agencies, Fortune 500 firms and the European perspective on the same issues.
BSP set to release second phase of sustainable finance regulation26 May 2021
The central bank of the Philippines unveiled the second-phase regulation for sustainable financing, which will take into account climate change risk in the assessment of credit and operational risk management of the banking industry.
BOJ will consider Climate in Monetary Policy Discussions28 May 2021
The Bank of Japan will consider climate change in its monetary policy discussions, Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said in his clearest signal yet that the central bank is looking to support the battle against global warming.
Auditors may see increased demand for ESG attestation28 May 2021
The first few months of 2021 witnessed some major milestones in investors’ and regulators’ efforts to get public companies to provide shareholders with more information about environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues.
ESG INDICES AND PRODUCTS
Novel ESG product launched in Mexico01 May 2021
Scotiabank Mexico launched an MXN-denominated structured note linked to IndexAmericas, a corporate sustainability index developed by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB).
German 30-yr green bond bucks market selloff with record demand11 May 2021
Germany received a record 39 billion euros of demand for a 30-year green bond, extending its yield curve for environmentally focused debt and drawing strong investor interest despite a selloff across euro debt markets.
Sustainable bonds in Q1 triple to record US$231 billion11 May 2021
Global issuance of green, social and sustainability bonds – or sustainable bonds – totalled a record US$231 billion in the first quarter of 2021, a 19% increase over the previous quarter and more than three times higher than the same quarter last year, according to a report by Moody’s Investors Service.
Turkey preparing framework as it may issue its first sovereign green bond21 May 2021
The Turkish government is working on legal requirements that will enable it to raise money by selling debt tied to environmental performance, according to an unconfirmed report. Many domestic companies turn to green bond issuances linked to sustainability measures in order to fund their projects.
China Q1 green bond issuance rebounds18 May 2021
China's green bond issuance in the January-to-March period rose to the highest level in six quarters, leading some analysts to predict this year's volume may beat the 2019 record as the nation pushes ahead with its emission reduction plans.
Eurex announces next generation of ESG derivatives on MSCI indexes18 May 2021
Eurex will expand its environmental social governance (ESG) derivatives suite by launching futures on the MSCI ESG Enhanced Focus Indexes. The new products come in light of increased demand for sustainable investments and the need for more advanced methods to select ESG investments.
Romania’s first green bond backed by EBRD18 May 2021
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has invested €11 million (£9.48m) in the first green bond issued by a bank in Romania. It has been issued by Raiffeisen Bank Romania, which has raised €81 million (£69.8m) to finance climate and environmental projects.
EQM, HANetf to launch Europe’s first pure-play solar ETF24 May 2021
US-based EQM Indexes, a provider of indices blending smart beta and thematic investment strategies, is planning to introduce Europe’s first ETF providing dedicated targeted exposure to the global solar industry.
BlackRock launches low carbon DAX ESG ETF25 May 2021
BlackRock has launched a new German equity ETF in Europe which targets a risk profile comparable to the regular DAX index while simultaneously lowering carbon intensity and boosting ESG performance.
New ESG bond index will make green finance transparent31 May 2021
Global launch of a new environmental, social and governance－ESG－bond index simultaneously in Beijing and Luxembourg will increase transparency in the domestic green bond market and improve the level of internationalization of the market.
