CTBC Financial Holding Co said that the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices (DJSI) have once again selected the company as a component of the DJSI World Index and have for the fifth consecutive year listed it on the DJSI Emerging Markets Index.

The company has shown outstanding performance in risk management, financial crime prevention, climate strategy, charity work and financial inclusion, as well as with regards to the environmental, social and corporate governance criteria, this year’s DJSI evaluation results said.

CTBC Financial said that it is an honor to be selected in the same year for the DJSI World Index and Emerging Market Index, after last being selected for both in 2017.

In the face of the increasing risks of climate change and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, people worldwide are paying close attention to sustainability issues, CTBC Financial president Daniel Wu said in a statement.

As one of the leading financial institutions in Asia, CTBC Financial hopes to become a model of corporate sustainability, Wu said.

In this regard, the company would continue to respond to stakeholders’ expectations and fulfill its corporate social responsibilities, while using the “Transformation and Transition” strategy to help solve social problems, promote low-carbon transformation and practice corporate sustainability, Wu said.

Launched in 1999 by Zurich, Switzerland-based sustainability ratings agency RobecoSAM Group and S&P Dow Jones Indices, the DJSI is not only one of the most internationally credible corporate sustainability evaluation tools, but also an important evaluation reference for global investors.

The components of the DJSI are selected from the Dow Jones Global Index, and thousands of companies are evaluated every year, based on their impact on the economy, environment and society.

The selection of companies reflects their strength in strategy, management and industrial characteristics, and only those that fall in the top 10% within their industry with regards to their sustainability performance can be selected for DJSI components, CTBC Financial said, adding that the competition is fierce.

In responding to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, CTBC Financial said that it has adopted a transparent governance policy and a responsible environmental attitude. The firm also pays attention to employee care and provides satisfying products and services, it added.

CTBC Financial said that in March it established a corporate sustainability office, which reports directly to the company’s president and helps coordinate the sustainability-related strategies and practices of the holding company and its subsidiaries.

In June, it promoted the corporate sustainability committee to a functional committee under the board of directors, with independent directors serving as the conveners in a bid to highlight the importance of sustainability-related issues.

CTBC Financial said that it also participates in international initiatives. The company in April joined the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures, and last month signed on to the Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials, becoming Taiwan’s first financial institution to join the industry-led initiative.

Its subsidiary CTBC Bank last year joined the Equator Principles to comply with the UN Principles for Responsible Banking.Another subsidiary, Taiwan Life Insurance Co, last year adopted the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) and Principles for Sustainable Insurance (PSI).

In July, the insurance unit released the first PRI report in the financial industry, and it plans to publish a PSI report by the end of this year, CTBC Financial said.

Taipei Times