The Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials (PCAF) announced today that global banking and financial services company HSBC has joined the initiative, marking the largest financial institution by total financial assets to date to sign onto the group and commit to measure and disclose its financed emissions.
The PCAF is a global partnership of more than 100 financial institutions, representing over $21 trillion in total assets, with a mission to develop and implement a harmonized approach to assess and disclose the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated with loans and investments. In November 2020, the PCAF launched the Global GHG Accounting and Reporting Standard for the Financial Industry, designed to provide a standardized, robust and clear way for banks, asset managers and asset owners to measure and report the GHG emissions impact of their loans and investment portfolios.
HSBC has been actively ramping its own climate and sustainable finance efforts over the past several months. In October 2020, the company announced a series of climate-focused initiatives, including a commitment to align its financing activities with the goals of the Paris Agreement, setting a target to reach net zero carbon emissions in its own operations and supply chain by 2030, and pledging to provide between $750 billion and $1 trillion in financing and investment to support its customers’ own decarbonisation and transition efforts.
Earlier this month, HSBC filed a climate change resolution to be brought before shareholders at the company’s AGM in May, containing an expansion of its climate policies, including the establishment of a plan to exit coal financing.
Daniel Klier, Global Head of Sustainable Finance, HSBC, said:
“When we set out our ambition to align our financed emissions to net zero by 2050 or sooner, in line with the Paris Agreement goals, we committed to work in partnership with our peers to enable the financial system to collectively tackle climate change.
“Clear and consistent data and reporting are critical to enable banks like HSBC to set targets and track progress as they work towards ambitious net zero goals. We are therefore delighted to be joining PCAF to improve our ability to measure and disclose our financed emissions as we work to achieve our net zero ambition.”
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