Recently, the Postal Savings Bank of China (hereinafter referred to as PSBC) released its 2023 Environmental Information Disclosure (Green Finance) Report. The main contents of the Report are as follows.

Strengthening top-level design and reinforcing strategic leadership. PSBC incorporated realizing carbon peaking and carbon neutrality and building a green bank into its medium and long-term development strategy and the outline for the 14th Five-Year Plan, aiming to effectively support the development of green, low-carbon and circular economy, and help build a beautiful China.

Advancing product and service innovation and increasing support for green investment and financing. Leveraging its fund and network advantages and focusing on the key fields of pollution prevention and control, energy conservation and environmental protection, eco-agriculture, etc., PSBC developed and promoted green and inclusive financial products fit for small and medium-sized enterprises, urban and rural residents and farmers, and promoted micro loans for photovoltaic solar power generation equipment, small hydropower loans, pollutant discharge loans and other green and climate-friendly financial products.

Accelerating digital transformation and strengthening ESG risk management. PSBC integrated ESG requirements into its entire credit management process. It took the lead to cooperate with the Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs (IPE) and integrate the environmental data of the Blue Map Database into its “Jinjing” (Golden Eye) credit risk monitoring system, thus boosting the digital transformation of environmental and climate risk management. PSBC had been assigned an A by MSCI ESG ratings for three years straight, and was awarded “2023 Best Practice Case for ESG of A-share Listed Companies” and “2023 Model Case for Digital Transformation in Listed Companies” by China Association for Public Companies.

Expanding cooperation and exchanges and enhancing professional capabilities. PSBC took an active part in research projects, textbook writing, learning exchanges and cooperation. It completed the “Green Credit Service Based on Big Data Technology” project in the pilot program for comprehensive use of financial data initiated by the Beijing Branch of the People’s Bank of China, exploring effective solutions to the problem of environmental information asymmetry in current green finance market transactions.

Reinforcing the green concept and deepening low-carbon operations. PSBC signed a responsibility statement on ecological and environmental protection with 36 tier-1 branches and subsidiaries, launched the “Green Office, Low-carbon Lifestyle” initiative, pressed ahead with the construction of green financial institutions, set up a personal pension service zone in mobile banking, and sped up building itself into a leading digital ecosystem-based bank.

Enhancing information disclosure and accepting supervision from all parties. PSBC disclosed information in compliance with the law, released annual reports, interim reports, and corporate social responsibility reports on a regular basis, and proactively accepted supervision from stakeholders. In addition, being aligned with international standards, PSBC adopted the Principles for Responsible Banking (PRB), joined the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI), and signed on to the Sustainable Blue Economy Finance Initiative of the United Nations.