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  • Cathay United Bank’s HCMC Branch Champions Sustainability with Insightful ESG Seminar

    Cathay United Bank’s HCMC Branch Champions Sustainability with Insightful ESG Seminar

    Celebrating 20 years of operations in Vietnam, the Ho Chi Minh City branch of Cathay United Bank (CUBHCM) hosted a dynamic ESG seminar titled “ESG: Challenges and Practices for Sustainable Development.” This event reflected the bank’s enduring commitment to innovation and sustainability. In a world where ESG considerations are reshaping business strategies, the seminar provided a crucial platform for industry leaders to delve into emerging trends, regulatory updates, and actionable insights for ESG implementation.

    As a subsidiary of Cathay Financial Holdings, a prominent Asian financial institution, CUB has consistently pushed the boundaries of traditional banking. Notably, in 2015, it became the first Taiwanese bank to adopt the Equator Principles, pledging to uphold internationally recognized environmental and social risk management standards. This pioneering stance has established CUB as a reliable partner for businesses venturing into the realm of sustainability.

    Michael Wen, Executive Vice President of Cathay United Bank, stressed the bank’s pivotal role in guiding clients through the complex ESG landscape. “Vietnam’s rapid economic growth presents both opportunities and sustainability challenges,” he remarked. “Collaboration among businesses, financial institutions, and policymakers is essential for driving meaningful, long-term change.”

    During the seminar, Nguyen Hoang Nam, ESG Leader at PwC Vietnam, highlighted the limited ESG awareness among local businesses, noting that nearly 39% of Vietnamese SMEs have never even heard of the concept. “Over 60% are unaware of the relevant regulations,” Nam explained, adding that financial constraints, vague legal frameworks, and limited capacity are significant barriers to progress.

    He advised businesses to invest in internal ESG education, develop robust data reporting systems, partner with green finance institutions, and engage with industry associations to implement best practices.

    Practical models and best practices

    Despite the hurdles, Vietnam is witnessing a notable surge in ESG implementation. The government has rolled out the Green Growth Strategy for 2021–2030, marking a national commitment to sustainable economic development. The forum also spotlighted enterprises excelling in ESG adoption, including IDICO Industrial Park, Schneider Electric, Ares International Certification, Dan-D Foods, and Micro Electricity.

    IDICO Industrial Park has embraced rooftop solar systems and wastewater reuse in its factories while investing in social housing to attract skilled labor. Schneider Electric is pushing toward net-zero emissions by 2050, focusing on innovations in clean electricity and grid decarbonization to shrink its carbon footprint.

    Partnering for sustainability

    By 2024, Cathay United Bank has garnered nearly 90 prestigious awards for excellence in asset management, digital innovation, and ESG practices, solidifying its reputation as a forward-thinking financial institution. Recently, it ranked in the top 20% of the Financial Supervisory Commission’s sustainable finance ratings.

    In alignment with its vision of Vietnam as a “second home,” CUB has vigorously supported ESG initiatives nationwide. The bank partnered with the Asian Development Bank to finance Vietnam’s largest onshore wind project in Ninh Thuan Province, boasting a total investment of US$107 million.

    Additionally, CUBHCM has unveiled a green CAPEX loan program aimed at funding environmentally friendly development projects. Notably, the first-phase factories financed through this initiative were the first in Northern Vietnam to achieve the LEED international green building certification.

    Lu Wei Chieh, General Manager of CUBHCM, emphasized that the seminar tackled real ESG challenges and provided actionable solutions. “Whether discussing energy transitions, strategic planning, or firsthand business experiences, the message was clear: collaboration is key to long-term change.” This seminar marked the first event in CUBHCM’s 20th-anniversary series, underscoring the bank’s commitment to connecting people, ideas, and solutions for a brighter future. Embracing the theme “Better Together,” CUB highlights that ESG is a collective journey, demanding spirited partnership from businesses, financiers, and communities to foster sustainable progress.

    Questions & Answers

    What are some challenges facing ESG implementation in Vietnam?
    Many local businesses lack awareness of ESG principles and relevant regulations, with significant barriers including financial constraints and vague legal frameworks.

    How is CUB supporting sustainability efforts in Vietnam?
    Cathay United Bank is actively promoting ESG practices and partnering with organizations like the Asian Development Bank to finance large renewable projects, as well as launching green loan programs to support eco-friendly investments.

    What was the main takeaway from the ESG seminar?
    The seminar highlighted the importance of collaboration among businesses, financial institutions, and policymakers to navigate the ESG landscape effectively and drive long-term change in Vietnam’s sustainability journey.

  • Ikea’s malls arm branches out into housing with new China centre

    Ikea’s malls arm branches out into housing with new China centre

    Ikea’s shopping malls business – one of the world’s largest – has kicked off the sales process for some 500 flats at its first-ever mixed-use retail and residential development, in Changsha, southern China.

    Cindy Andersen, MD at Ingka Centres since February, said in an interview she expected flat buyers to start moving in during March next year, after the adjacent mall opened last month following pandemic-related delays.

    Ingka Centres has 45 malls, or “meeting places” as it calls them following a strategy tweak a few years ago, anchored by Ikea furniture stores across Europe and Russia, and in China where they are branded Livat.

    The company has shifted towards more entertainment and social spaces in its developments as consumers, in China in particular, increasingly shop online, visiting malls more for food or movies. Andersen told Reuters a third of tenants at the Livat Changsha mall were retailers currently.

    With housing, it is testing yet another income leg, banking on the rapid urbanization in China. Livat Changsha’s residential building, besides the flats, also sport common living and workspaces designed and decorated in co-operation with Ikea that it hopes will appeal to people working from home.

    Andersen said the Livat Changsha mall – Ingka Centres’ fifth in China and its first development across markets to also offer housing – had around 95-per-cent occupancy in July, with tenants ranging from restaurants and sport and entertainment outlets to around 350 retailers including Decathlon and Uniqlo across 130,000sqm.

    “I think we had a really relevant strategy even before the pandemic, and now the trends we saw already then have accelerated.”

    The atrium of the Livat shopping centre in Changsha, China. Image: Ingka Centres.

    She said that Ingka Centres, along with parent Ikea, still has great belief in a future of physical shopping, including in China, as long as it is tailored to consumer expectations around services, omnichannel and convenience.

    “There is a need to include retail experiences in the meeting places also going forward. We have a lot of confidence this is a need for the consumer also in China,” she said, adding that Ingka Centres had added 50 international retail brands to its portfolio in China over the past year.

    “I think it very much comes down to the fundamental needs of people. We like to be with other people and we like to be in environments where we can experience, where we can touch and feel,” she said.

    Across markets, Ingka Centres is trying various omnichannel models and digital services at its malls with tests ranging from local e-commerce platforms to live shopping events.

    At Livat Changsha – where it has invested more than US$616.8 million to date – the focus initially will be on a loyalty scheme app that is connected to Chinese social media WeChat, sporting services such as virtual reality centre navigation, online restaurant queuing and cinema ticket purchases.

    Andersen said the program currently has around 2.3 million members in China, compared with 1.5 billion in May last year.

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