Lee Min-hyung joined The Korea Times in 2014 and has worked as a journalist mainly in Korea’s finance, tech and automotive industry. He specializes in content creation, breaking news and in-depth analysis currently on transportation and mobility. You can reach him via mhlee@koreatimes.co.kr.
Woori launches ESG consulting service for SMEs
Woori Bank headquarters in Seoul / Yonhap
By Lee Min-hyung
By Lee Min-hyung
Woori Bank launched a consulting service for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) seeking to fulfill its environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) management, Sunday.
Corporate clients of the lender can take advantage of the service by accessing Woori's internet banking site for free. The non-face-to-face service was developed as part of Woori's efforts to raise ESG awareness and help more companies jump on the bandwagon.
Under the partnership with E Credible ― a local credit certification service operator ― Woori offers other diverse benefits to companies using the service. For instance, when a company's ESG evaluation result meets a certain standard, it can receive an ESG loan product at a low interest rate, according to the lender. The bank also provides diverse ESG education programs. One-on-one consulting is also available.
Woori Bank has also partnered with Korea Management Association Consulting for the launch of the service. The Woori ESG Consulting service offers programs such as a diagnosis on a firm's non-financial performance and on-site consulting on how to develop ESG management strategies.
“The European Union is expanding corporate due diligence directives, and conglomerates are also stepping up efforts to enhance their ESG management when doing businesses with their partner companies,” a spokesman at Woori Bank said. “We will proactively support SMEs and our partners to quickly join the trend of the times by introducing more concrete ESG management strategies.”
Earlier, Woori Financial Group announced its group-wide ESG vision, called “Good Finance for the Next.” The financial holding firm pledged to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050 and invest 100 trillion won ($76 billion) in ESG by developing ESG-related financial products and issuing relevant bonds.