Commenting on Hong Leong's green loan, SMU Associate Professor of Finance Liang Hao said that two things can be true at once: A building can meet strong energy or green building criteria, as required on Government Land Sales sites under the BCA's 2021 green building certification scheme, and still cause some degree of nature loss if it requires land-clearance. He suggested that a sustainability-linked loan over a green label could be preferred to avoid perceptions of greenwashing and communicate why.
