Against the backdrop of rising environmental, social and governance (ESG), green finance and sustainability issues, Fintech products and services that are oriented towards these areas can help provide quality data and tools to help individuals and institutions make optimal decisions. Our Fintech article in this edition of Banking Today takes a close look at the growing intersection between Fintech and ESG and the human capital skills and knowledge required to scale -up business models within the ESG and Fintech landscape.

Since the conclusion of the 26th Conference of the Parties (COP26), there has been increasing momentum towards achieving net-zero carbon emissions and stabilizing climate change. A number of big emitter countries are officially beginning the shift. In one of the most notable announcements at COP26, India shared its plans to achieve net zero emissions by 2070, and another one of the world’s most populated developing countries, China, has already pledged carbon neutrality by 2060. Other big emitters such as the EU, Brazil and the United States have formalized their pledges to reach net zero targets by 2050 and have begun to recognize the need to act now with both short term and long term goals in mind for net-zero emissions.

How will the Russian-Ukraine crisis affect ESG investments? Some analysts believe the crisis has caused a rethink that could see a rise in investor interest in environmental, social, and governance (ESG) opportunities. Our Co-Founder & CEO, Helene Li expressed her views at AsianInvestor on how the Ukraine #crisis has affected investor position on ESG investing in Asia and emerging markets together with other industry experts, David Smith, PhD, CFA, Priscilla Lu, Dr Xinting Jia, Martin W. Hennecke, Maria Elena Drew, Evelyn Yeo and Kunjal Gala.