Minister of Trần Hồng Hà exchanges views with a representative of HSBC Asia Pacific. - Photo courtersy of HSBC Vietnam

HÀ NỘI – HSBC Bank (Vietnam) Ltd. and the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MoNRE) on November 8 exchanged a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate on the Environment, Social, and Governance (ESG) agenda.

The ceremony, a COP27 side event, was attended by Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Trần Hồng Hà and Stephen Moss, Regional Chief Executive Officer – Middle East, North Africa and Turkey, HSBC Group, and witnessed by representatives of MONRE and HSBC Asia Pacific's delegation attending COP27.

The MoU states that HSBC Vietnam will assist MoNRE in building a practical approach to realising its strategies in alignment with Việt Nam's net zero emissions targets and build a framework that unlocks international financing sources to support these goals. In particular, the bank will focus on four key objectives, including:

Contributing to the implementation of the National Strategy on Climate Change to 2050 through sharing best practices and experiences to support the Government of Việt Nam in developing and completing the framework and policies, to unleash the potential funding resources from international financiers and investors. HSBC Vietnam will contribute knowledge and experience in developing ESG products, financial mechanisms, solutions and programs, including international principles and standards on sustainable finance; development of the framework for a USD Sovereign and Sovereign Agency Green Bond; development of local carbon trading market and related financing mechanisms.

Supporting Việt Nam to build the human resources and capabilities needed for sustainability. Building the Taxonomy and defining sustainable assets and financial products by participating in developing the second version of the ASEAN Taxonomy for Sustainable Finance to identify and classify sustainable economic activities in the ASEAN region. Contributing and supporting the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment to develop toolkits and guidance for businesses across sectors to assess their emission levels, transition risks and to develop pathways to a lower greenhouse gas emission economy.

The MoU marks another step for HSBC in the execution of its commitment to accompany Việt Nam on the journey towards its long-term sustainability goals. Last November, Việt Nam made a bold commitment at COP26 to reach net zero by 2050. The country needs to call for the participation of both public and private sectors to realise its ambition.

"We highly appreciate the commitment of HSBC to the sustainability of Việt Nam as well as its contribution to support the country realise its climate commitment made at CO26," said Minister Hồng Hà. "Our fight against the impacts of climate change is a major challenge that needs the whole society's participation. Every organisation or business with strong capabilities, expertise, knowledge and experience in sustainability can play an important role in helping Việt Nam transition to a low-carbon economy. Particularly, the collaboration between the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment and HSBC can open up a world of opportunity for the Government of Việt Nam to leverage resources from financial institutions, industry associations, technical experts, etc. and encourage more businesses to join the journey."

"Addressing climate change has become more critical than ever," said Tim Evans, CEO of HSBC Vietnam. "This is especially true in Việt Nam, which is one of the countries most vulnerable to damage that climate change has on our planet. As both a bank with over 150 years of association with Việt Nam and as an international bank that leads the way in sustainability, we are aware of our role to take action to protect our communities, businesses and natural environment from the damaging effects of climate change. Our partnership with the Government of Việt Nam is yet another way that we can help contribute to arresting the negative impacts of climate change. We are very pleased to work alongside the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment on bringing Việt Nam closer to its goal of reaching net zero by 2050 and thereby realising its ambitious commitment made at COP26."

Following Việt Nam's commitment at COP26, HSBC Vietnam committed to arranging up to US$12 billion to help the country's transition by 2030. The bank will mobilise funds from local and international financial markets to provide sustainable solutions in green finance, debt finance, supply chain, trade, green deposits, and investment products. HSBC incorporates prudent risk assessment and international green finance standards in providing these solutions. VNS