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Bursa Malaysia Berhad (“Bursa Malaysia” or “The Exchange”) today hosted the Sustainability Symposium 2015, marking its secondASEAN CAP10 Sustainability Series of events this year. The event gives emphasis to the next phase in the Exchange’s journey towards building a sustainable marketplace. Themed ‘Responsible Business, Responsible Investing’, the conversations at the Sustainability Symposium 2015 were centered on the growing importance of the sustainability agenda from global perspectives, as a competitive strategy for long-term success.
Global sustainability experts and advocates converged on Kuala Lumpur at the Sustainability Symposium today and shared insights on global sustainability trends and best practices, emphasising on the value of sustainability business and reporting to stakeholders. More than 500 capital market drivers, including public listed companies (“PLC”) CEOs, Chairmen and board members from almost 300 PLCs, 60 local and regional fund managers, brokers, regulators and sustainability advocates were present to engage in conversations with the thought leaders present.
The keynote delivered by Yang Berhormat Dato’ Sri Abdul Wahid Omar, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department – Economic Planning Unit, gave prominence to the sustainability agenda for the capital market. In conjunction with the event, the Minister also officiated the launch of Bursa Malaysia’s new Sustainability Framework, comprising amendments to the Listing Requirements and the issuance of a Sustainable Reporting Guide and Toolkits, paving the way towards greater integration of sustainable strategies amongst PLCs.
The Minister said, “Malaysian corporates will continue to be key pillars of growth for the country. Their preparedness to adopt environment, social and governance (“ESG”) principles will help enhance Malaysia’s competitiveness in the market. Sustainable business practices should no longer be viewed as an option, but a necessity for all corporates.”
Dato’ Tajuddin Atan, Chief Executive Officer of Bursa Malaysia reiterated the reality of the business case for sustainability and its influence on shaping businesses today. He said, “The world is going through unprecedented socio-economic-environmental changes; and it is the role of the Exchange to facilitate the journey and development of our marketplace in tandem with these changes, specifically, towards our PLCs conducting their businesses in a responsible manner.
The Exchange has a unique and critical role in shaping a more sustainable capital market by setting standards and defining best practices to facilitate sustainability practices and disclosures among PLCs. Our purpose today is to provide greater clarity to our PLCs as well as investors, on steps the marketplace can collectively take to better integrate sustainability strategies in businesses and create essential visibility on material issues, specifically through the reporting process. If global capital market players, Exchanges, Corporates and investors alike collaborate to make an impact for good, the tangible improvements in market resilience and impact for billions will be appreciated for generations to come. As a signatory of the United Nations Sustainable Stock Exchanges Initiative, we are committed to advocating the adoption of sustainable practices amongst our PLCs and investors, via indexes, guides, toolkits as well as engagement programmes.”
As it stands today, the overall market for sustainable investment in Asia is robust and growing, having increased to US$53 billion at the start of 2014 from US$40 billion at the start of 2012 in the 13 markets where data was collected (Bangladesh, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam[1]).
Moving forward, PLCs will be required under the Listing Requirements to disclose a narrative statement of their material economic, environmental and social risks and opportunities in their annual reports. The Sustainability Reporting Guide and Toolkits will provide PLCs with an in-depth guide and practical methods to embed sustainable business strategies, assess the impact of material economic, environmental and social risks and opportunities on their business and their stakeholders, and report on them.
Whilst the amendments to the Listing Requirements will take effect on a staggered basis over three (3) years, starting from 31 December 2016 till 31 December 2018, all PLCs are encouraged to initiate the process early. For more information on the amendments and the effective dates, please visit Bursa Malaysia’s website. The Sustainability Reporting Guide and Toolkits are also available for download from Bursa Malaysia’s website at: www.bursamalaysia.com
