Standard Chartered will offer both its corporate and retail clients in Singapore access to a deposit solution focused on supporting financing needs related to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.
U.S. dollar deposits were co-developed with sustainability research firm Sustainalytics and liquidity raised from sustainable deposits will be used to fund SDG-related activities in Asia, Africa and the Middle East. This follows what the bank claims to be the world’s first SDG deposit product launched in Europe by Standard Chartered in May 2019.
«While green deposits – dedicated to renewable energy – are increasing in popularity, this is the first time any bank has launched a deposit product linked to sustainability and the SDGs,» said Patrick Lee, CEO of Standard Chartered Bank Singapore.
«The Sustainable Deposit offers both retail and corporate clients an opportunity to address global challenges such as poverty and inequality in some of the world’s fastest-growing economies.»
Retail Demand
With corporate banking and asset management clients already in the midst of adopting environment, social and governance-related factors when making decisions, the bank focused on the untapped potential of the retail market.
A recent sustainability survey by Standard Chartered said that 68 percent of high net worth individuals want to create a better future through sustainable investing with a high portion of Singapore’s wealthy (43 percent) exhibiting knowledge about the space.
«We are taking a cue from our clients to make sustainable retail banking a reality, and have created the world’s first Sustainable Deposit for our individual clients,» Lee said.
