Under the arrangement, BNP Paribas will offer revolving credit lines to Ant Group that come with a 'two-way interest rate adjustment mechanism' tied to a number of the Company’s SPTs (Sustainability Performance Targets). For instance, the SPTs stipulate that Ant Group will adhere to the company’s green and sustainable development commitments, including those on reaching carbon neutrality, using renewable energy and donating a certain percentage of the company’s annual sales revenue to biodiversity conservation and environmental protection projects.

Each year, the bank will verify the SPTs using Carbon Matrix, AntChain’s enterprise carbon management SaaS (software-as-a-Service) product. Carbon Matrix is built upon blockchain technology which ensures that the verification process is transparent and tamperproof. If the SPTs are met, the interest rate on the SLL will be lowered, if they are not, the interest rate will be raised.

BNP Paribas’ partnership with Ant Group comes after the French bank in April announced it has achieved carbon neutrality in its own operations since 2021, and is well underway to reach net-zero in all carbon emissions throughout its value chain by 2030.

On April 21, Ant Group joined the Low Carbon Patent Pledge and made its green computing patents free for low carbon innovators around the world. Earlier in the year, a number of Chinese and overseas financial institutions were in touch with the company to discuss green financing collaborations.

CG Lai, CEO of BNP Paribas China, comments: "Sustainability is deeply embedded across all aspects of BNP Paribas, from our long-term strategy to everyday operations, and Ant Group is an avid advocate for ESG development globally. Our similar vision for a sustainable future has laid the foundation for more joint achievements and innovations across sustainable finance in the future."