Dah Sing Banking : Financial Holdings Limited - 2023 ESG Report

(Stock Code: 440)

2023

Environmental, Social and Governance Report

Table of Contents

1	About this Report	03
2	Commitment and Governance	07
3	Responsible Business	15
4	Marketplace	22
5	Workplace	29
6	Community	37
7	Environment	42
8	Our Performance	48
9	Content Indices	55

Making Connections for a Better and Sustainable Future

The Group recognises that the pursuit for a sustainable future cannot be achieved alone, and the interconnectedness between our stakeholders, our operations and the environment has become more apparent than before. Our commitment towards long-term sustainability, as outlined in this report, is reflected in our eorts to foster a harmonious relationship between economic progress, environmental stewardship, and community well-being through the products and services that we oer.

About this	Commitment	Responsible	Marketplace	Workplace	Community	Environment	Our	Content
Report	and	Business					Performance	Indices
	Governance

About this Report

This Report covers the major subsidiaries of Dah Sing Financial Holdings Limited (the "Group") for the period from 1 January to 31 December 2023. There has been no significant change in the reporting boundary for our 2023 ESG Report nor any significant changes to our organisational size, structure, ownership or supply chain.

During the year, the Group has complied with all applicable disclosure requirements and provisions of the Environmental, Social and Governance ("ESG") Reporting Guide set out in Appendix C2 of the Listing Rules in respect of the financial year ended 31 December 2023. In addition, this report is prepared with reference to the IFRS S2 Climate-related Disclosures.

This Report provides an annual update of the initiatives, plans and performance of the Group in ESG topics in 2023. It provides a summary of the activities and measures taken by the Group and our key subsidiaries across the Group's core operations in banking and insurance in our key markets in Hong Kong, Macau and Mainland China with respect to the material ESG matters under five categories - Responsible Business, Marketplace, Workplace, Community and Environment. There is no significant change in the scope of this Report from that of the 2022 ESG Report. This ESG Report should be read in conjunction with the Corporate Governance Report in the Group's 2023 Annual Report, which is also accessible on the website of Dah Sing Bank, Limited ("DSB" or the "Bank") at www.dahsing.com. This Report was endorsed by the Audit Committee and approved by the Board of Directors (the "Board") in March 2024.

DAH SING FINANCIAL HOLDINGS LIMITED Environmental, Social and Governance Report 2023

3

About this	Commitment	Responsible	Marketplace	Workplace	Community	Environment	Our	Content
Report	and	Business					Performance	Indices
	Governance

Stakeholder Engagement

The Group recognises that the pursuit of a sustainable future has become paramount and this could not be achieved alone. The interconnectedness between our stakeholders, our operations and the environment has been more apparent than before which is reflected in our unwavering dedication to fostering a sustainable and inclusive future. To this end, the Group seeks to continuously engage our key stakeholders through diverse channels to understand their views with regards to ESG priorities, and to review and update the topics of key materiality to our business operations.

The table below outlines the engagement channels we have in place to communicate with our key stakeholders.

Key Stakeholders	Engagement Channels
Employees	• Training, seminars and briefing sessions

• Performance management
• Surveys
• Dah Sing Fun Club
• Employee Assistance Programme
• Internal newsletters
• Business Operations Portal/intranet
• Recreational and volunteer activities

Customers	•	Relationship manager visits
	• Corporate websites, mobile apps and social media platforms
	•	Customer service hotlines
	• Service Quality Department that responds to customer feedback
	• Talks, seminars and webinars
	•	Customer satisfaction surveys
	•	Transactional surveys
	•	Newsletters
	• Branches and SME centres
Shareholders	•	Annual General Meeting and other general meetings
	•	Corporate websites
	• Corporate communications including announcements, circulars,
		interim and annual reports
	•	Share registrar
Suppliers	•	Regular meetings and communications
	•	Regular supplier reviews
	•	Supplier management
Regulators	•	Regular meetings and communications
	• On-site reviews
	•	Compliance reports
Rating agencies	•	Regular meetings and communications
Communities	•	Volunteer activities
	•	Sponsorships and donations
	•	Community outreach

DAH SING FINANCIAL HOLDINGS LIMITED Environmental, Social and Governance Report 2023

4

About this	Commitment	Responsible	Marketplace	Workplace	Community	Environment	Our	Content
Report	and	Business					Performance	Indices
	Governance

Materiality Assessment and Materiality Matrix

We have taken the following three steps to understand different stakeholders' views and to update our materiality matrix for 2023:

Identification

Prioritisation

Validation and

Evaluation

Group Materiality Matrix

A total of 22 material topics, identified in 2022, were evaluated based on observation of latest industry trends and peer practices.

The list of material topics was prioritised through questionnaires with different stakeholder groups. In the survey, stakeholders were invited to provide suggestions and views on the addition or removal of material topics.

The material topics prioritised were reviewed by the ESG Committee and the Board, informing the Group's strategic direction in addressing the topics of the highest importance to our stakeholders.

High

Stakeholder interest Medium	17
	21
	5
Low
	Low

Responsible Business

6

7

9

8

2

4

13 12

		18	22	1
	10	11
19	15			14
16
	20		3

Moderate

High

Significance to business

Maketplace Workplace Community Environment

We observed a significant increase of stakeholder interest in #6 Support for Green Finance compared to 2022, reflecting the higher priority placed by external stakeholders to increase efforts in green finance. It was in line with the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region ("SAR") Government's initiatives to establish itself as one of the leading global hubs for GreenTech and GreenFi as highlighted in its 2023/24 Budget announcement, and also with our increasing emphasis on green finance, including the increase in ESG funds distributed by our two banking subsidiaries, DSB and Banco Comercial de Macau, S.A. ("BCM").

DAH SING FINANCIAL HOLDINGS LIMITED Environmental, Social and Governance Report 2023

5

About this	Commitment	Responsible	Marketplace	Workplace	Community	Environment	Our	Content
Report	and	Business					Performance	Indices
	Governance

Heightened interest by internal stakeholders in #11 Economic Performance reflected their vigilance of the challenging economic environment and the continued weakness in commercial and economic activities. They might seek to prioritise improving economic performance in 2023 amid higher levels of uncertainty and volatility in the market.

Meanwhile, the focus by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority ("HKMA") and The Hong Kong Association of Banks in 2023 on the revised Code of Banking Practice with emphasis placed on customer protection might have resulted in a higher perceived materiality by external stakeholders on #10 Financial Inclusion.

Category	#	Material topics		Relevant sections
Responsible	1	Responsible Products and Services	•	Responsible Products and Services
Business
2	Ethical Behaviour, Anti-Money	•	Information Security and
		Laundering ("AML") and Anti-corruption		Cybersecurity
			• Ethical Behaviour, AML and
				Anti-corruption
	3	Labour Standards	•	Workplace
	4	Climate Risk	•	Climate-related Risks
	5	Supply Chain Management	•	Supply Chain Management
Marketplace	6	Support for Green Finance	•	Green and Sustainable Products
	7	Support for SMEs	•	Support for SMEs
	8	Customer Satisfaction	•	Customer Focus
	9	Customer Data Privacy	•	Customer Focus
	10	Financial Inclusion	•	Customer Focus
			•	Digitalisation
	11	Economic Performance	•	Economic Performance
Workplace	12	Employment	•	Culture and Values
			• Talent Attraction and Retention
	13	Training and Development	•	Training and Development
	14	Health and Safety	•	Health, Safety and Well-being
	15	Diversity and Equal Opportunity	•	Diversity and Equal Opportunity
Community	16	Supporting the Younger Generation	•	Youth Development
	17	Promotion of Sports and	•	Promotion of Sports and Support
		Support for Those in Need		for Those in Need
	18	Environmental Conservation	•	Green Awareness Promotion
Environment	19	Energy and Greenhouse Gas Emission	•	Environmental Footprint
		Management	•	Staff Awareness and Engagement
	20	Waste Management	•	Environmental Footprint
	21	Water Use	•	Environmental Footprint
	22	Going Paperless	•	Paperless

DAH SING FINANCIAL HOLDINGS LIMITED Environmental, Social and Governance Report 2023

6

About this	Commitment	Responsible	Marketplace	Workplace	Community	Environment	Our	Content
Report	and	Business					Performance	Indices
	Governance

Commitment and Governance

The Group has consistently demonstrated our commitment to fulfilling our brand promise to progress and prosper alongside our customers and the communities we serve in Hong Kong and the Greater Bay Area ("GBA"). In line with the Group's ESG roadmap, we have dedicated our efforts to maximising value creation for our stakeholders in key strategic domains. Our aim is to build an ecosystem where our customers, staff and the communities we serve are interconnected by a shared goal of building and transitioning towards a more resilient and sustainable future.

Snapshot of Our ESG Strategy

ESG Governance

Establish ESG positioning under Board's oversight

Marketplace

Prioritise Green and Sustainable

Banking ("GSB") and

differentiate with SME focus

Workplace

Build an engaged workforce to

enhance employee loyalty

Governance

Establish clear accountability on ESG oversight and strategy implementation

Communication

Regularly communicate our ESG initiatives to our internal and external stakeholders

Reporting

Continuously improve disclosure quality and performance tracking

Green and Sustainable Banking

Build capacity, raise GSB awareness and establish our green product shelves

SME Support

Increase outreach to and assist small and medium enterprises ("SMEs") in ESG transition

Customer Focus

Improve customer experience and reinforce customer centricity

Digitalisation

Optimise customer experience and operational impact through digital transformation

Culture and Ethical Behaviours

Promote ethical behaviours to uphold the Group's Culture and Values

Training and Development

Enhance organisation and leadership capabilities for future-ready workforce

Health and Well-being

Promote health awareness and provide flexible and healthy work environment

DAH SING FINANCIAL HOLDINGS LIMITED Environmental, Social and Governance Report 2023

7

About this	Commitment	Responsible	Marketplace	Workplace	Community	Environment	Our	Content
Report	and	Business					Performance	Indices
	Governance

Community

Enrich our community strategy

to enhance impact

Environment

Sharpen our focus on

environmental Key Performance Indicators ("KPIs") for strategic impact and operational efficiency

Youth Education

Support youth education with a focus on STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics) and targeting under-privileged children

Youth Sports

Promote sports as a means of nurturing all-round youth development

ESG Awareness

Raise the awareness of ESG matters in the community for promoting sustainable development

Volunteering

Engage our employees to contribute to the society through volunteering activities

Environmental Footprint

Reduce our environmental footprint and influence our supply chain

Paperless

Reduce paper consumption through digitalising operational processes and engaging customers on digital adoption

Staff Awareness and Engagement

Promote environmental conservation to our staff for a greener planet

DAH SING FINANCIAL HOLDINGS LIMITED Environmental, Social and Governance Report 2023

8

About this	Commitment	Responsible	Marketplace	Workplace	Community	Environment	Our	Content
Report	and	Business					Performance	Indices
	Governance

Key Achievements for 2023

Implemented greenness assessment framework as an onboarding criteria for borrowers in seven carbon-intensiveindustries

Offered a total of

33 and 16 ESG investment funds

in DSB and BCM to provide more fund choices respectively

Marketplace

Awarded Certificate of Merit in "Hong Kong ICT Awards 2023 - Fintech (Applied Solutions)" for proprietary AI product recommendation engine "Next Best Action" which analyses customer financial habits to predict financial needs

Completed digital banking revamp with

87 new / enhanced features and capabilities

Launched Cultureland gamification programme to enhance awareness of Group culture and values

94,723 employee training hours for staff development

Workplace

711 training hours in climate-related risks and green and sustainable finance

Recognised in "SportsHour Company Scheme"* for promoting employee well-being through daily physical activities

*Organised by InspiringHK Sports Foundation

DAH SING FINANCIAL HOLDINGS LIMITED Environmental, Social and Governance Report 2023

9

About this	Commitment	Responsible	Marketplace	Workplace	Community	Environment	Our	Content
Report	and	Business					Performance	Indices
	Governance

16% reduction in paper usage, compared to our baseline in 2020

	Planted 5,216 trees through Mastercard Priceless
Environment	Planet Coalition Programme contributed through customer
	e-statement enrolment campaign

BCM introduced a new summer uniform for branch staff, enabling staff to stay cool to reduce energy consumption of air-conditioning

1,356 volunteers
contributing 4,058 volunteering hours
1,494 beneficiaries engaged through community
programmes and activities
Co-organised Metaverse ArtTech Creation Course 2023	Community
with Chinese YMCA of Hong Kong to provide ArtTech
training and immersive digital art experiences to
80 primary and secondary students in Hong Kong
Co-organised the BCM Bowling Open Competition
with Macau China Bowling Association for third year
to raise funds for Macau Association for Intellectual
Development Services

DAH SING FINANCIAL HOLDINGS LIMITED Environmental, Social and Governance Report 2023

10