A bold new climate ambition and unprecedented support for customers and colleagues during the COVID-19 pandemic are some of HSBC’s latest environmental, social and governance (ESG) highlights.

The ESG information, now set out more extensively in the Annual Report and Accounts 2020, explains the action that HSBC is taking to meet its responsibilities to customers, communities and other stakeholders around the world. It summarises our progress against key non-financial targets and metrics.

Among our achievements and actions in the past year:

  • We announced our ambition to become a net zero bank by 2050, and provide between USD750 billion and USD1 trillion of sustainable financing and investment by 2030 to support our customers in their transition to net zero and a sustainable future
  • We supported our customers with improved digital banking services: More than half (54 per cent) of our customers were digitally active and mobile app downloads of our core business digital banking platform HSBCnet, rose 146 per cent
  • We delivered laptops, desktops or virtual desktop infrastructure to more than 78,000 colleagues during the pandemic, with up to 70 per cent of our workforce working from home at any one time
  • We met our target of 30 per cent women in senior leadership roles, and set a new aim of 35 per cent by 2025

Watch our video to find out more about how we are supporting stakeholders around the world.

Our commitment to ESG (duration 0:30) We’re acting now on ESG. Our future relies on it

The publication of our ESG disclosures comes as we set out our purpose, values and strategy.

Group Chief Executive Noel Quinn said: “Opening up a world of opportunity’ is more than a purpose – it is a statement of intent. Everything that we plan to do over the next decade is designed to unlock opportunity for our stakeholders, whether customers, colleagues, shareholders or communities.”

To read more about our ESG disclosures, please go to pages 42-75 of our Annual Report and Accounts.

ESG facts

Fact: HSBC provided 93 billion US dollars in sustainable financing and investment between 2017 and 2020
Fact: 30.3 per cent of senior leadership roles at HSBC were held by women in 2020
Fact: More than 708 million transactions are screened for signs of financial crime each month

HSBC sets out net zero ambition

Find out how we plan to help build a thriving low-carbon economy.

ESG and responsible business

We are committed to doing business responsibly. Find out more about our approach to environmental, social and governance issues.