Standard Chartered, a UK-based multinational banking and financial services company with $688 billion in assets, recently announced its sustainable deposit product has surpassed the $2 billion mark. The milestone also includes a significant deposit from the French integrated electricity company, EDF.
Standard Chartered claims that the sustainable deposit product is the first of its kind and helps finance activities that support the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), this includes combating climate change, supporting financial inclusion, and tackling the lack of universal access to health and education. The banking group noted deposits reached $1 billion in January 2020 and then doubled in three months, highlighting that despite the recent economic turmoil brought by the COVID-19 pandemic, companies are still keen to finance the SDGs in emerging markets.
Speaking about the latest milestone, Simon Cooper, CEO of Corporate, Commercial and Institutional Banking at Standard Chartered, stated:
“While we are all rightly focused on combating the immediate impact of COVID-19, we also need to ensure that there is sustainable and equitable growth afterwards, as highlighted by the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. We’re proud to offer our clients a product that allows them to deposit their money with purpose even during these difficult times.”
Standard Chartered went on to add that funds raised from the deposit are used to help finance the SDGs in the following ways in Africa and Asia:
- 67% in loans to entrepreneurs in low-income countries
- 21% in sustainable projects – the majority being financing for wind power
- 12% in microfinance loans for financial inclusion