IB President Li Renjie Attends the Asian Introduction Dinner for the “Sustainable Banking Awards” in Hong Kong

Upon the invitation of the International Finance Corporation (IFC), Mr. Li Renjie, President of the Industrial Bank of China, attended the Asian Introduction Dinner for the 2009 FT Sustainable Banking Awards in Hong Kong on February 1, 2010 and delivered an address during the function. More than thirty guests from the banking sector, regulatory departments and other financial sectors attended the introduction dinner. The Industrial Bank was the only Asian financial institution invited to make an address at the function.

The introduction dinner was jointly sponsored by IFC and the Financial Times (FT). It is the first of five ceremonies to mark the commencement of appraisals for the “Sustainable Banking Awards” in 2010. The other four introduction dinners will be held in emerging markets, namely, Buenos Aires (Latin America), Cairo (Middle East), Johannesburg (Africa) and Moscow (Eastern Europe). As the launch ceremony for the assessment of the 2010 Sustainable Banking Awards in Asia, the introduction dinner intends to enhance the influence of the Awards in emerging countries and beyond, and demonstrate that the awards place a focus on emerging markets.

At the dinner, Mr. Li Renjie talked about the relationship between the Industrial Bank and the Sustainable Banking Awards. He went on to explain how the Industrial Bank has approached sustainable development, going from initial trials to a consensus in corporate governance, from passive constraint to actively seeking opportunities, and from developing and promoting a single financial product to the overhauling of its commercial mode and processes. Mr. Li affirmed that sustainable development has become a global trend, and that under this backdrop, the Industrial Bank is willing to cooperate with banks and financial institutions in China and abroad to explore and implement sustainable finance and promote the development of sustainable finance in emerging economies in Asia. Mr. Li’s wonderful speech struck a chord among the guests present at the function. Many banks and financial institutions expressed a strong interest in the Industrial Bank’s approach and practices in sustainable finance.

The Industrial Bank was the only Asian financial institution invited to give an address at the dinner. This demonstrates that the sponsors recognize IB as an outstanding sustainable bank in Asia. It also shows that the sponsors hope that IB will continue to set a good example and thereby promote the sustainable development of financial institutions in emerging markets.

The following is the text of President Li Renjie’s speech:

Ladies and Gentlemen:

Good evening!

It is my great honor to be invited to attend tonight’s function by the International Finance Corporation and the Financial Times. I would like to express my gratitude to the sponsors for giving me this opportunity to meet old and new friends, share our thoughts and experiences in sustainable finance and talk about the opportunities and challenges we face in the post-financial crisis era. This reminds me of an old Chinese saying: “One never runs out of things to say with friends that think the same way.”

We have always regarded the Sustainable Banking Awards as the Oscars of sustainable finance. Its uniqueness, fairness, understanding and care with global perspective have moved us and won our hearts. We are proud to have won his honor, and we are proud to introduce the awards to other banks in China and emerging markets.

Since first coming into contact with the Sustainable Banking Awards in 2007, the Industrial Bank has won five nominations over the space of three years. In 2007, the Industrial bank was awarded second place in the Sustainable Deal of 2007. In 2009, it was named “Asian Sustainable Bank of the Year”. The Industrial Bank is the only financial organization from Mainland China to have won this accolade. We thank the Evaluation Committee for its recognition and encouragement of IB’s sustainable finance. By entering into the assessment every year, we evaluate our progress and reflect on our shortcomings. This helps us to keep on the right track as we continue to probe deeper into sustainable finance.

More importantly, the Sustainable Banking Awards have increased the exposure of the Industrial Bank in China and the rest of the world. It has opened a door for the Industrial Bank to liaise with so many world famous financial institutions, international organizations and governments of emerging markets and explore the roles and opportunities that banks have in the sustainable development of people and society. By learning from each other and communicating with each other, we can further our concepts, improve our value system, enrich our practices and strive to turn the Industrial Bank from an ordinary bank into a sustainable bank.

First, a trial that was conducted in practice has become a consensus in corporate governance. The bank has gone from conducting an experiment in energy efficiency financing projects with the IFC to the Board of Directors leading the way towards the Equator Principles, thereby turning the Industrial Bank into China’s first Equator Bank. Throughout this process, the concept of sustainable finance has become a consensus in the corporate governance of the bank. Integrating the concept of sustainable finance with traditional Chinese ethical thought, the Board of Directors of the bank has adopted a socially responsible approach known as “integrating morals into profit”. The Industrial Bank regards the implementation of rational approaches to development, further understanding the relationship between a bank’s social responsibilities and its own sustainable development, exploring means of performing social responsibilities and establishing a harmonious relationship between people, nature, environment and society as its core concepts and code of conduct. This concept is used to govern the behavior of the bank.

Second, passive acceptance has been replaced by actively seeking opportunities. The bank has gone from accepting technical assistance from the IFC to develop finance for energy efficiency projects to actively developing carbon finance and environmental finance; it has gone from cautiously adopting the Equator Principles to actively promoting sustainable finance among other banks and social circles. All of these things demonstrate that the Industrial Bank has gone from passively constraining itself to proactively seeking out opportunities for development. We no longer see finance for energy-saving and emissions reduction projects and the Equator Principles as obligations and constraints, but as avenues to distinguish our self and uncover new opportunities. Sustainable finance has gradually become an inherent part of the Industrial Bank brand, and a key part of its competitiveness.

Third, the bank has gone from having a single product in sustainable finance to redesigning its entire commercial mode and process. From simply offering energy-saving and emissions reduction loans to developing a comprehensive environmental and social risk management system and restructuring processes according to the Equator Principles, the concept of sustainable finance, and especially the Equator Principles, have penetrated every single aspect of the bank’s operations. This concept guides the reform and reconstruction of the bank’s operation mode and business processes.

Ladies and gentlemen, the Copenhagen Climate Conference has left us with a number of blanks. But this makes this meeting all the more meaningful. Although we cannot add more meaningful terms to the Copenhagen Agreement, we can promote the formation of a common understanding: “faced with climate change, the competitive edge of a country will be soon redefined by its capacity for sustainable development”. We are obliged to use the huge financial leverage that banks have in the sustainable development of people and society and continually innovate modes of investment and financing to drive on the “triple bottom line” of enterprise profitability, accountability and sustainability. On this basis, the structure of the world economy can be optimized and the rationally and universality of new international rules ensured. The Chinese Government has announced targets to reduce carbon emissions per unit of GDP by 40-45% before 2010 as compared to levels in 2005. More attention is being paid to the roles and demands of emerging Asian economies in the field of sustainable development. These markets are becoming increasingly influential. In consideration of this, sustainable finance in Asia is set to have bright prospects. Therefore, the question of how we should use the theoretical and practical platform of the Sustainable Banking Awards to demonstrate our achievements, share our experiences, improve our capacity and expand our actions is a subject we all must consider. The Industrial Bank is looking to cooperate with you, and thereby continue its commitment to the exploration of sustainable finance and the promotion of sustainable finance in emerging Asian economies.

Thank You!