China SIF Week was successfully held during the first week of December 2023. And on the 6th, the Sustainable Stock Exchange Roundtable (SSER) took place.
Climate-related disclosure is crucial for investors and other stakeholders in capital markets to understand the climate-related risks and opportunities of listed companies. Significant progress happened this year, including the release of ISSB standards and GRI's revision on climate standards. Stock exchanges around the world are also upgrading climate-related information disclosure requirements.
The Sustainable Stock Exchange Roundtable (SSER) during 2023 China SIF Week provided participants with the latest development and insi ghts, in respect of:
1 Climate-related standards such as IFRS S2;
2 Applications of such standards in stock exchanges;
3 Practices of climate disclosure by listed companies.
The Sustainable Stock Exchange Roundtable is co-hosted by China SIF, the UN Sustainable Stock Exchanges Initiative (UN SSE) and the IFC-supported Sustainable Banking and Finance Network (SBFN). CDP also supported this Roundtable. Speakers and participants include capital market regulators, stock exchanges as well as key stakeholders across the world.
This Roundtable is moderated by Dr. Guo Peiyuan, Chairman of China SIF and of SynTao Green Finance.
Senior Specialist of the Sustainable Stock Exchanges Initiative, Mr. Mike Zimonyi and ESG Officer and Lead of the Sustainability Disclosure and Transparency Program at the International Finance Corporation (IFC), Ms. Ralitza Germanova opened the session with their opening speeches. IFC and UNSSE introduced the IFC-UNSSE collaboration on capacity building on ISSB for stock exchanges across emerging markets.
Mr. Leng Bing, Director of the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB), provided a comprehensive overview of the crucial role of ISSB standards in optimizing the dialogue between investors and companies. He mentioned that disclosures of sustainability information need to meet the diverse needs of various stakeholders and emphasized the interconnected application of IFRS S1 and S2. In his talk, Leng Bing also highlighted the importance of ISSB as an international standard that should be adopted by different jurisdictions.
Invited by IFC, the Commissioner of the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission, Mr. Shaikh Shamsuddin Ahmed introduced BSEC’s efforts in sustainable information disclosure. “Despite consistently being one of the lowest emitters of greenhouse gases with a 0.4% contribution, Bangladesh has ranked seventh in the Global Climate Risk Index’s analysis of countries most affected by the impact of weather-related loss events. BSEC realizes the potential for green investment flows and is currently working on developing a National Sustainable Bond Guidelines. Under this initiative, BSEC is working closely with IFC to help create a more sustainable resilient bond market and promote greater funding flows, helping create labels of sustainable bonds, green bonds and instruments that are designed to benefit the climate, social (such as gender) and environmental projects.”
The next keynote speech was delivered by Ms. Kelly Lee. Ms. Lee, Senior Vice President, Policy and Secretariat Services, Listing Division, Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited. She said, “HKEX's proposed climate disclosure enhancements, which were introduced in April 2023, are intended to act as a springboard to facilitate listed companies’ transition towards full ISSB adoption. HKEX will continue to work closely with the HKSAR Government and the Green and Sustainable Finance Cross-Agency Steering Group to develop a roadmap for the appropriate adoption of ISSB standards for Hong Kong's financial services, aligning with international standards.”
Next, the Head of Business Development Division 2 of the Indonesia Stock Exchange, Mr. Ignatius Denny Wicaksono introduced the practices and actions taken by the Indonesia Stock Exchange. He stated that “[while] the risk of fail[ing] to mitigate the climate change is real, […] disclosure plays an important role to navigating capital to greener economy and tackle this issue.”
Mr. Pei Huiqi, Vice Director of the International Cooperation Department at the Shenzhen Stock Exchange also delivered a keynote speech.
The subsequent panel discussion session was introduced by Mr. Zhu Ling, Country Lead of Capital Markets, CDP China. “CDP serves as a bridge connecting standard setters and users. We transform abstract disclosure standards into tangible, specific questions for standard users to report. In 2024, we will host the ISSB climate-related disclosure standards. This means that over 23,000 companies disclosing through CDP will report climate-related information in accordance with ISSB standards. The combined market value of these companies represents two-thirds of the total global equity market capitalization.”
Ms. Yuan Wei, Project lead for China ESG Advisory Services and Asia Coordinator of SBFN, IFC, moderated the panel on corporate and capital market disclosure practices. Ms. Ding Jing, Deputy General Manager of Longyuan Power, Ms. Katherine Han, Head of ESG Research & Investment at Harvest Fund Management, Ms. Li Jing, ESG Affairs Director at Glodon, Mr. Ricco Zhang, Senior Director of Asia Pacific at ICMA and Mr. Max Boucher, Senior Manager of Biodiversity and Oceans at FAIRR participated as panelists. The panelists introduced the practices of their respective organizations in sustainable information disclosure and discussed the changes they anticipate in information disclosure with the launch of ISSB.
Dr. Guo Peiyuan, Chairman of China SIF and of SynTao Green Finance, concluded the Roundtable. He highlighted that climate-related disclosure is currently a focal point in ESG information disclosure, making the theme of this event timely. Emphasizing their commitment, Guo Peiyuan stated that China SIF will continue collaborating with partners like UN SSE, IFC and CDP to drive climate-related disclosures in the capital market. The forum anticipates working with stock exchanges to provide Chinese-language training on the new ISSB guidelines for listed companies.
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We would like to thank our strategic partners Moody's, AXA SPDB Investment Managers, Southern Asset Management, and partners CDP, Asia Research and Engagement (ARE) for their support of the 11th China SIF Annual Conference. The media support institutions include Sina Finance, Caijing Magazine, Economic Observer, CCTV.com, Jiemian News, Netease Finance, Caixin Global, Wallstreetcn.com, EqualOcean, qeubee live, Wind 3C Conference, iFinD. Nearly 30 institutions have provided strong support during the preparation process for the 2023 China SIF Week.
The 11th China SIF Annual Conference serves as the flagship event of the 2023 China SIF Week. Additionally, China SIF Week comprises 12 events, encompassing a wide range of topics. For inquiries regarding cooperation intentions with China SIF or requests for information, please contact the organizer at:
contact@syntaogf.com
About China SIF
China Sustainable Investment Forum (China SIF), established in Beijing as a non-profit organisation in 2012, is dedicated to promoting responsible investment and providing an internationalised platform for exchanging and sharing ideas on issues concerning sustainable development, with focus on facilitating Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) integration, advocating green finance, and contributing to a responsible capital market in China as well as its sustainability.
As a member of the Global SIFs Network, China SIF organises Annual Conferences, Summer Summits, SIF Weeks and a series of featured seminars and webinars annually, convening policymakers as well as domestic and foreign experts to share their views, research, and good practice. Professionals and practitioners from research institutes, financial institutions, listed companies, government agencies, and media representatives have joined our discussion and endeavour to explore multiple ways to promote and practice responsible investment and green finance.
China SIF keeps launching a series of landmark research reports, such as China Sustainable Investment Review, supporting the Dissertation Competition on ESG and Sustainable Finance and developing the "ESG Online Classes" series of educational videos together with partners and industry experts to promote ESG investment concepts and practices. Over the years, China SIF has become one of the most influential responsible investment forums in the region.
Please visit https://en.chinasif.org/ for more information.
