United Nations Sustainable Development Goals

How we contribute to the UN SDGs

The UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were adopted by the United Nations in 2015 to encourage governments, business and civil society to play their part in tackling the world’s major economic, environmental and social challenges.

BOCHK fully supports the SDGs. We have identified the following SDGs that closely align with our sustainability impact, priorities and initiatives.

SDGs

Our Actions

End poverty in all its forms everywhere

Financial relief measures to support SMEs during the COVID-19 outbreak
Promoting financial inclusion through Hong Kong’s most extensive local branch network
Livelihood financial services to cater for elderly and disabled people
Charitable donations, anti-pandemic donations and community services to help the underprivileged
Promoting financial education to improve the public’s wealth management skills
Microfinance services in Southeast Asia providing loans to micro-sized enterprises and farmers

Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls

Anti-discrimination policy well established, effectively implemented and reviewed annually
Equal opportunity embedded as a principle in all policies for recruitment, remuneration and benefits, training and promotion
Board gender diversity continuously enhanced
57% of staff are female
Every customer treated fairly, with no discrimination on the basis of gender, age, race, or nationality

Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all

Promoting the prosperous development of Hong Kong
Contributing to RMB internationalisation and GBA development
Innovating green finance products and services to help Hong Kong become a green finance hub
Employing local staff from the places where we operate
Participated in a number of youth development and employment programmes, including the “Fintech Career Accelerator Scheme” and “Greater Bay Area Youth Employment Scheme”
Providing competitive remuneration and staff welfare
Promoting staff development, with around 52 average training hours per employee annually

Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation

Fostering in-house technology innovation and digital transformation capabilities through the Digitalisation Committee and Innovation Lab
Promoting digital banking and empowering our customers to manage their finances digitally, with total number of mobile banking customers exceeding 2.95 million
Reinforcing young customers’ knowledge of independent financial management
First local bank to offer IPO retail bonds and secondary bond transactions via mobile banking in support of the HKSAR Government’s green bond issuance
Launching innovative digital financial technology products for financial crime prevention

Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts

Committed to achieving carbon neutrality in our own operations by 2030
Adopted four major green operating goals for 2025 covering electricity consumption, carbon emissions, water consumption and paper purchase
Supporting TCFD and publishing a standalone TCFD Report
Partnering with S&P to develop the world’s first climate transition index in the Greater Bay Area
Promoting renewable energy by installing solar panels on office buildings
Advancing green banking through effective environmental management systems and a range of emission reduction initiatives

Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalise the global partnership for sustainable development

Become one of the cornerstone members of the Alliance for Green Commercial Banks
Joined the Hong Kong International Carbon Market Committee formed by HKEX and became one of the first market participants in the Core Climate carbon market platform
Strategic partnership with Guangzhou Emissions Exchange to advance carbon emissions trading and green finance development
Co-chair of the Banking – Financing the Transition Working Group of the Hong Kong Green Finance Association
Sole sponsor of the “BOCHK Corporate Low-carbon Environmental Leadership Award” since 2015, encouraging enterprises to engage in environmental protection
Partnering with environmental NGOs in a range of conservation activities and youth education programmes