ESG investment is beneficial for business, according to the bank CEO, who dismisses the US assault on “woke” money

Standard Chartered’s stock has decreased by about 3.8% so far this year.

Bill Winters, the CEO of Standard Chartered, downplays the significance of a US campaign against mission-driven investments and asserts that ethically conscious investing may be profitable.
His remarks coincide with the current political divisiveness around investments based on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) considerations.
Winters stated on CNBC’s “Squawk Box Europe” that “I mean, I do want to wake up one day and have a planet so if that makes me woke, shoot me.”
green backlash.

Backlash in the green
It is not limited to the United States to oppose climate initiatives. As businesses and individuals in Europe begin to feel the pinch of the energy transition, signs of a Green backlash are beginning to emerge.

In response to a question about whether he was worried about businesses reducing their commitments to sustainability, Winters said, “I don’t think there has been a big backing away.”

Since establishing a parallel track of goals in recent years, the CEO claimed that his organization has been “constantly refining” its net-zero process.

Goals for the developing markets-focused bank include achieving net-zero carbon emissions inside the company by 2025 and net-zero emissions financed by the bank by 2050.

In terms of net zero policy, we declared that we would be thinking leaders and action leaders, and our clients have fully embraced this. There hasn’t been any retreat from it at all, according to Winters.

Furthermore, we announced that we would establish a company to assist our clients. That company generated $720 million in revenue the previous year, and we project that it will generate $1 billion the following year. That is not insignificant. It works well for our business,” he remarked.

“You can’t keep investing resources in this firm if you don’t get a respectable return on investment, at least not indefinitely. This is not charitable giving. This isn’t being politically aware. This is about doing the right thing for both your business and the environment. We are doing it, and I don’t see anyone else changing their minds about it.