UOB confident of exiting coal in 20 years, but avoids 'big declarations', says its sustainability chief

DESPITE being "relatively confident" of exiting coal-financing within the next two decades, UOB has refrained from making a public position to focus on helping its clients make the transition, said Eric Lim, the bank's newly-appointed sustainability chief.

The bank's exposure to coal-fired power plants will end within five years, but phasing out thermal coal will take more time, he said on Tuesday at a media briefing on UOB's sustainability plans.

He was responding to questions posed by The Business Times on whether the bank will set a hard deadline for exiting coal-financing, following in the footsteps of global banks and local peer DBS.