Bank of America (BofA) is planning to beef up its ESG investment team in Asia in a bid to better tap into the evolving market, reported Bloomberg.
The bank is seeking to double its underwriting of green bond deals in China over the next two to three years, BofA China head Wang Wei revealed to the news agency in an interview.
Wei said that the bank aims to underwrite $50bn of green and sustainability-linked bonds, equities and loans for Chinese customers with carbon-neutral targets by the middle of the decade.
As part of the move, BofA plans to hire four new people for the current three-member team focused on ESG-based investing strategies in the region.
The bank is also accelerating its efforts in connection to projects and equity financing, hedging and investment products in Asia.
Wang was quoted as saying: “China will be paying huge attention to ESG in the next decades. It’s under immense pressure to develop the discipline.”
In China, the bank is eyeing to offer seed money or other financing options in solar, wind and battery-making space.
It also plans to early stage high-emission firm involved in hydrogen and carbon capture technologies that will help phase out consumption of fossil fuel.
Meanwhile, China is said to be only a part of BofA’s wider ESG ambitions. In last April, the bank committed $1trn in financing to drive the shift to a low-carbon economy. It also committed an additional $500bn to address social investment goals.
