【PRESS RELEASE】Taipei, 1st October 2021 – Taiwan Shin Kong Commercial Bank (SKB), a subsidiary of Shin Kong Financial Holding Co., Ltd. (SKFH), announced today that it has officially adopted the Equator Principles, a globally recognized risk management framework, adopted by financial institutions, for determining, assessing and managing environmental and social risk in projects and is primarily intended to provide a minimum standard for due diligence and monitoring to support responsible risk decision-making. Taking this step is part of the Bank’s ongoing movement towards the United Nations goals for sustainable development. To date, 125 international financial institutions in 37 countries are signatories of the Equator Principles.
Both SKFH and SKB support policies that improve the prevention of global warming and climate change. SKFH, the fifth-largest financial holding company in Taiwan, has been selected as a constituent of the FTSE4Good TIP Taiwan ESG Index since 2019 because of its commitment to sustainable development and practices associated with ESG activities for many years. One of SKB’s green projects was launching its first green bond, structured in alignment with Green Bond Principles formulated by the International Capital Market Association (ICMA) in June of this year. The NT$ 1 billion 5-year bond issuance contributed to solar energy projects.
For the sake of the global advocacy for ESG and the increasing emphasis on ESG-related risks, SKB will use the Equator Principles guidelines as an opportunity to upgrade its management of environmental and social risks. It is anticipated that the Equator Principles guidelines will allow SKB to enhance its competitiveness in the global project financing market. Moreover, SKB believes that they will be able to share the practical experience of environmental and social impact risk management with their clients. It is SKB’s long-standing policy to proactively take part in responding to climate change as a genuine and responsible corporate citizen, and do their best in promoting sustainability issues and the transformation of Taiwan’s low-carbon economy.
For more information, please refer to the SKB’s latest ESG report：
https://www.skbank.com.tw/05e29ada15.html?
The Equator Principles Association link：