HSBC appoints Kelvin Tan as head of sustainable finance, investments for Asean

HSBC has been at the forefront of helping Asean’s governments, businesses and its people transition to a lower carbon position.

KUALA LUMPUR: HSBC has appointed Kelvin Tan to the newly created role of head of sustainable finance and investments, Asean as the banking group continues its role to fight global warming.

In a statement on Wednesday, it said Tan, who is a Singaporean, has extensive financial services experience, having worked across several major global banks over the past 33 years.

He joined HSBC in 2009, where he led HSBC Singapore’s commercial banking business. Most recently, he was CEO of HSBC Thailand since 2015.

Based out of Singapore and reporting to HSBC Singapore CEO, Kee Joo Wong, the banking group said Tan will support Singapore-based clients with their regional needs as they transition to a lower carbon way of working and living.

“Specifically, the role will oversee the provision of sustainability-linked finance; help to develop innovative climate solutions; lead cross-business and cross-market collaboration across HSBC’s Asean franchises; and to enhance employee education and understanding to assist with customer engagement,” it said.

Kee said Southeast Asia is one of the most vulnerable regions in the world to climate change-related natural disasters. If nothing is done, the environmental, social and economic impact of climate change will be profound.

“HSBC has been at the forefront of helping Asean’s governments, businesses and its people transition to a lower carbon position. Kelvin’s extensive experience in Singapore and across Asean markets, as well as his proven commercial banking ability, makes him the perfect candidate to ensure we take further strides towards a more strategic and coordinated approach,” Kee said.

According to the Asian Development Bank, Asean is projected to experience some of the most significant temperature increases globally. If left unaddressed, climate change could reduce the region’s gross domestic product by up to 11% by the end of the century.

Moreover, Southeast Asia faces an infrastructure investment shortfall of more than US$100bil a year, which may have worsened amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

HSBC has committed to becoming a net zero bank by 2030, reducing its carbon footprint in its operations, supply chain and financing portfolio.

As part of this, HSBC will provide up to US$1 trillion in sustainable financing and investment by 2030 to support clients in their own transition to more sustainable ways of doing business.