Public Bank

In terms of senior leadership accountability, the responsibility for sustainability issues within Public Bank lies with the board of directors. The financial institution links the remuneration of its management team to sustainability performance criteria.

Public Bank is committed to minimising its negative impacts on nature and biodiversity.

Public Bank discloses the amount of lending it directs towards usually excluded groups and small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). In terms of workforce diversity, the financial institution discloses a breakdown of its total direct operations workforce for each employee category by gender and age group. The financial institution has a grievance mechanism, accessible to all workers and external stakeholders, to raise human rights, as well as bribery and corruption, concerns or complaints. The financial institution commits to prohibiting bribery and corruption and protecting personal data.

Public Bank has an opportunity to link the remuneration of its executive team to sustainability performance criteria. Currently only executive remuneration is linked to sustainability. In terms of female representation in leadership positions, women are underrepresented on the board of directors where only three out of nine board members are women. Furthermore, there is no evidence that the financial institution discloses the ratio of basic salary and remuneration of women to men in its total direct operations workforce for each employee category. Public Bank also has an opportunity to disclose the actions it takes to address any pay gaps. Regarding engagement, the financial institution has an opportunity to describe its engagement approach on sustainability themes and impact topics with clients and investees.

Public Bank discloses a net-zero target, but it could clarify if the target covers its financing activities. In terms of engagement on the topic of climate change, the financial institution has an opportunity to disclose the key sectors and companies it has identified as priorities to engage with, specifically on alignment with the Paris Agreement. Regarding financing for climate solutions, while the financial institution discloses that it aims to achieve MYR 40 billion in environmental, social and governance (ESG) friendly financing, there is no evidence that the financial institution discloses time-bound targets explicitly for climate solutions. In addition, while the financial institution discloses that it will not finance coal mining, it has an opportunity to disclose that it will not provide any form of finance to any new fossil fuel project.

There is no evidence that Public Bank has a publicly available policy statement committing it to respect human rights laid out in the UN Guiding Principles. Furthermore, there is no evidence that the financial institution describes the process for identifying its human rights risks and impacts through its relevant financing activities. Public Bank has an opportunity to formalise its commitment to respecting the health and safety of workers in a public policy document. It could also disclose the amount of finance directed towards low-income developing countries.