The Taiwan Monthly

Global Connection

TWSE, JPX and KRX held ESG Workshop to create new collaboration opportunities

The Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE) attended an ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) workshop in Tokyo, Japan on September 27, 2019. The workshop was organized by the Japan Exchange Group (JPX). TWSE, JPX and Korea Exchange (KRX) shared the achievements and experiences of promoting ESG in their capital markets. Presentations and discussions about topics such as "How does TWSE promote sustainable development in Taiwan's capital market", "Background and activities of JPX Sustainability Committee", and "ESG in Korea - From Green Bonds to ETFs" were conducted in the event to benefit the attendees through the sharing of experiences in different markets.

 

The TWSE, JPX and KRX have always maintained a close and friendly relationship. After the three parties signed a trilateral Memorandum of Understanding on March 15, 2018, the TWSE took the initiative to invite the top executives of the two exchanges to visit Taiwan in March 2019. The ESG workshop was based on the resolutions of the meeting between the top executives of the three stock exchanges, and was to be held first by the JPX. The TWSE shared its experiences and results on the advocacy for sustainability in Taiwan's capital market, including promoting ESG information disclosure, implementing corporate governance evaluation and compiling indices related to corporate social responsibility (CSR). The goal is that through mutual learning, the ESG quality of the TWSE, JPX, and KRX can be improved, further creating more value for the markets.

 

In 2015 and 2016, the TWSE actively launched a series of collaborations between Taiwan and Japan. In 2016, Taiwan introduced the ETFs that track the benchmark indices of Japan. For four consecutive years since 2015, the TWSE has participated in the IR Festa held annually by the JPX and regularly meets Japan's institutional investors, earning good results in the Japanese market. Japan's share of the overall foreign investment has increased from 1.36% at the end of 2013 to 3.17% at the end of August 2019, a growth of 133%.

 

The progress of collaboration between Taiwan and Korea has also been rapid and in-depth. Following the signing of the second Memorandum of Understanding in December 2015, the two sides completed cross-listing of ETFs in 2016, followed by the collaborative compilation of the Taiwan-Korea IT Premier Index (ITP) in 2017. The ETFs that track the index was listed in the two markets simultaneously in June 2018. In addition, the two markets have also implemented joint marketing, and a Korean Capital Market Investment Conference was held in Taipei in 2018. The TWSE also sends representatives to Seoul every year to participate in the Global ETP Conference to promote Taiwan’s capital market.

 

The TWSE has long been committed to establishing good interactions with exchanges around the world, especially the exchanges in Japan and Korea, with which it has established close collaborative relations. From the mutual visits of the top executives of the three parties at the beginning of this year to the active participation in the ESG workshop, the TWSE has shown its determination to carry out global connectivity. In October, the TWSE attended the annual conference of the World Federation of Exchanges (WFE) in Singapore, to build more collaboration opportunities in the global platform. The TWSE will continue to strengthen and extend its international network, actively promote the advantages of Taiwan's capital market and reinforce the relationship with other exchanges to enhance Taiwan's visibility.

 

For further inquiries, please contact Ms. Pon at 1220@twse.com.tw.