Recently, Wind, a leading domestic ESG rating agency, released the 2025 ESG rating results of Shanghai Rural Commercial Bank (SHRCB). The Bank’s rating was upgraded from Grade A to Grade AA, ranking first in the domestic banking industry in terms of overall score. In addition, the Bank also performed excellently in two other mainstream domestic ESG ratings: it has maintained the top AAA grade in the Huazheng ESG rating for two consecutive years, and currently holds a Grade AA rating in the China Securities ESG rating, both placing it at the forefront of the industry.
Shanghai Rural Commercial Bank fully recognizes the strategic significance of implementing the ESG philosophy in enhancing its core functions, strengthening core competitiveness, and promoting high-quality development. Centering on the strategic goal of “building a model bank in ESG management,” the Bank has fully integrated the ESG philosophy into its development strategies and core business operations, conscientiously fulfilling its social responsibilities. To improve the ESG top-level design, the Board’s Strategy and Sustainable Development Committee provides overall leadership and coordination of the Bank’s sustainable development agenda, an ESG Leadership Group has been established, jointly chaired by the Chairman and President, to deliberate on major ESG matters and to advance key ESG tasks with full commitment.
In terms of ESG practices, Shanghai Rural Commercial Bank has leveraged its distinctive characteristics, focusing on areas such as “Rural Revitalization,” “Technology Finance,” “Green Finance,” and “Financial Empowerment for Social Governance,” to create ESG highlights with unique rural commercial bank features. For example, the Bank has carried out grid-based financial services, developed a “1+4” grid-based service system, launched the “Hundred Days, Hundred Towns” campaign, and deepened bank–village cooperation to support the construction of rural credit systems. As of the end of March 2025, a total of 282 Credit Villages and 10 Credit Towns (or Townships) had been accredited. The Bank has also vigorously advanced the “Heart Homeland” public welfare service project, integrating resources from “Community + Bank + Enterprises + Schools” to provide services such as bringing renowned doctors into communities and offering senior citizen university programs. As of the end of March 2025, the Bank had established 1,013 “Heart Homeland” service stations, over 100 senior citizen university teaching sites, and organized more than 4,000 activities.
Furthermore, Shanghai Rural Commercial Bank has actively joined high-level international ESG organizations, participated in the formulation and piloting of ESG-related standards, and played a leading and demonstrative role in enhancing the overall ESG standards of the industry. As the first PRB (Principles for Responsible Banking) member institution in Shanghai, SHRCB was invited to participate in the UNEP FI (United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative) Global Roundtable and delivered a keynote presentation. In March this year, SHRCB became the first banking institution among the initiators of the China Supplier ESG Rating Platform, contributing to the building of a sustainable supply chain ecosystem in China. In its 2024 ESG Report, the Bank for the first time introduced the double materiality assessment, disclosing in detail, under the four-pillar framework, seven double materiality topics, including “Responding to Climate Change,” “Consumer Rights Protection,” “Information Security and Privacy Protection,” and “Human Capital Development,” thereby providing the capital market with a vivid example.
Looking ahead, Shanghai Rural Commercial Bank will continue to strengthen ESG management, strive to become the greenest bank in the Yangtze River Delta, and promote sustainable, high-quality development, thereby contributing financial strength to cultivating new quality productive forces and to building a Beautiful China.
