BURSA ENHANCES SUSTAINABILITY REPORTING FRAMEWORK WITH NEW CLIMATE CHANGE REPORTING

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 26 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia Securities Bhd (Bursa Malaysia) has announced the enhanced sustainability reporting for the listing requirements of the Main Market and ACE Market with the aim to elevate sustainability practices and disclosures of listed issuers.

Chief executive officer Datuk Muhamad Umar Swift said the scale of the sustainability reporting enhancements that Bursa Malaysia introduced today “sends a clear signal of Bursa Malaysia’s ambition to be the leading exchange for environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) in the region.”

“The high bar that we have now set for all our listed issuers is underpinned by a multi-year, phased implementation approach to ensure a successful rollout.

“More importantly, by embracing these enhancements, our listed issuers would boost their overall resilience, competitiveness and, in turn, appeal as attractive investments,” he said in a statement today.

Bursa Malaysia said Main Market listed issuers will now be required to include disclosures in their sustainability statements such as a common set of prescribed sustainability matters and indicators that are deemed material for all listed issuers and climate change-related disclosures that are aligned with the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) recommendations.

Others are at least three financial years’ data for each reported indicator, corresponding targets as well as a summary of such data and corresponding performance targets in a prescribed format and a statement on whether the sustainability statement has been reviewed internally by internal auditors or independently assured.

Bursa Malaysia said the sustainability reporting requirements for ACE Market-listed corporations have also been strengthened to align with those of the Main Market.

In addition, ACE Market-listed corporations are now required to disclose a basic plan to transition towards a low carbon economy (transition plan) with regard to climate change reporting.

“This not only facilitates ACE Market-listed corporations in considering climate change-related risks and opportunities, but also takes into account their maturity in this space,” it said.

Meanwhile, chief regulatory officer Julian Hashim said that come 2025, all Main Market listed issuers will be reporting TCFD-aligned disclosures where they will have to internalise climate change considerations in their business strategies.

The enhanced sustainability reporting requirements for Main Market listed issuers will be implemented in a phased manner, beginning with the disclosure of the common sustainability matters for the financial year ending on or after Dec 31, 2023, and culminating with the TCFD-aligned disclosures on or after Dec 31, 2025.

Similarly, ACE Market listed corporations will adopt the enhanced sustainability disclosures on a staggered basis, with disclosures of the prescribed sustainability information taking effect for on or after Dec 31, 2024, and concluding with disclosures of the basic transition plan on or after Dec 31, 2026.

-- BERNAMA