ESG Loans With Little Transparency Boom in China, Hong Kong
A record boom of sustainability-linked loans signed by Chinese and Hong Kong firms is raising questions about limited disclosures amid broader concern about the global market for the facilities.
Firms from China and Hong Kong have signed a record $13.1 billion of such loans in 2022, surpassing the $12.6 billion for all of last year, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Conversely, the volume of sustainability-linked loans globally has declined.
There are red flags concerning how targets are set for sustainability-linked loans, according to Chaoni Huang, head of sustainable finance in the Asia Pacific region at BNP Paribas SA. “If the targets are very marginal in terms of improvements, that is something we want to avoid at all costs.”
Source: https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/esg-loans-with-little-transparency-boom-in-china-hong-kong-1.1782214