CAPE TOWN - Global financial services company Standard Chartered Bank on Thursday said it had committed USD75 billion to support clients as they transitioned to a low carbon economy.
The bank said it also intended to reduce its carbon emissions across its global properties by 2030.
“Over the past 18 months, we have made a series of commitments which are all geared towards supporting the Paris Agreement on climate change and the transition to a cleaner, greener, fairer economy," said the bank's head for corporate affairs, brand and marketing, Tracey McDermott.
She said the investment required to meet the goals could not be provided by governments and NGOs alone, making it critical that investors embraced the sustainable development goals (SDG) "at pace and scale".
“Our unique footprint means we are well placed to help get finance to where it matters most. That is why, as well as ceasing support for clients who generate more than 10% of earnings from thermal coal by 2030, we also have a renewed target for financing and facilitating USD35 billion of clean technology and renewables, and USD40 billion of sustainable infrastructure.”
Sunil Kaushal, the company's regional chief executive for Africa and the Middle East, said it was estimated that emerging markets needed an annual USD2.5 trillion investment to meet the SDG targets by 2030.
“A bulk of this investment will need to be focused on Africa and the Middle East, which is home to some of the key sustainable development opportunities. The financing gap in Arab countries has been estimated to be over USD100 billion annually, whilst in Africa this figure stands between USD500 billion and USD1.2 trillion. For the goals to be met by 2030, investors and banks need to coordinate and connect capital to promote sustainable development.”