The webinar of Sustainable Capital Markets in times of COVID-19 was successfully held on 14 May 2020 with over 200 attendees. The panelists shared their insights on the role of capital markets in light of the pandemic. They expressed hope to see sustainability finance to continue to accelerate with a belief that sustainable development would likely be one of the lasting outcomes of COVID-19.

Chaoni Huang, Vice President and Secretary General of Hong Kong Green Finance Association (HKGFA), speaking at the webinar where she shared her thoughts on sustainable finance.

“No doubt, we are at a health crisis that is unseen before. But, the pandemic and the climate and biodiversity crises are deeply connected. Sustainable finance is leveraging the market to shift capital to support COVID-19 response efforts in the short run while keeping climate and environmental agenda high in the medium to long run.” said Chaoni.

Emily Chew, Global Head of Sustainability for Investment Management and a member of Morgan Stanley Investment Management’s Sustainable Investing Council, also shared her perspectives in viewing the post-pandemic economic reconstruction as an opportunity.

‘The pandemic has exposed in the starkest way possible that how employees are treated, what contribution companies make to improving access to essential goods and services, and how executives pay themselves in times of crisis, are indeed material to a company’s operations and reputation.  The post-pandemic economic reconstruction represents perhaps the biggest opportunity of a generation for investors to work with companies to build all facets of sustainability into their DNA.’ said Emily.

Watch the video of the webinar: Link

Slide shared during the webinar on the overview of COVID-19 related social and social-themed bonds by Chaoni.