OCBC upgrades green finance portfolio target to $25b by 2025

It has already surpassed its $10b target for 2022 in Q1.

Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation (OCBC) has set a new target of $17.91b (S$25b) by 2025 for its sustainable finance portfolio, having already surpassed its original $7.2b (S$10b) target in Q1, or two years ahead of its original 2022 schedule, the bank said in a press release.

The bank said that it witnessed a strong demand for green and sustainability-linked loans in the past year. Of the more than 20 such loans that the bank participated in last year, it acted as sustainability advisor or coordinator for more than 10 of them.

In April 2019, OCBC said that it would no longer finance new coal-fired power plants.

During the same year the bank also participated in solar, onshore wind and offshore wind projects, in Taiwan, China, the United Kingdom, Australia and Malaysia.

Sustainable finance’s strong growth momentum is expected to continue over the next few years despite COVID-19, according to OCBC.

“The awareness and interest in sustainable projects has been increasing over the last few years, and COVID-19 has helped to draw attention to wider sustainability issues, including social ones. In the wake of the pandemic, the collective action taken by both the public and private sectors can help to rebuild economies in a more sustainable fashion,” said Mike Ng, head of structured finance and sustainable finance, OCBC Bank.

The bank plans to focus on driving growth in industrial and geographical diversification to reach its “25-by-25” target.