Malaysian Global Innovation & Creativity Centre (MaGIC) held the Buy for Impact fair, a two-day public event held at Publika shopping mall, the past weekend. Buy for Impact is a flagship initiative under MaGIC’s Impact Driven Enterprise Accreditation (IDEA) programme, with a goal to sustain the momentum in helping the Impact Driven Enterprise (IDE) sector become more mainstream.

Buy for Impact aims to cultivate a conscious buying behaviour among the general public, as well as private and public sectors with the soon-to-be-released trademarked logo for goods or services by accredited Impact Driven Enterprises (IDEs). This will help inform consumers and encourage them to use their purchasing power either as an individual or an organisation to create a positive impact and help local or wider communities. 

HSBC has launched a new type of sustainable bond based on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs). This is the first time that a private sector entity has issued a benchmark-size bond of this type and reflects the Group’s commitment to financing projects that benefit communities and the environment.

Recent research commissioned by HSBC shows that 68% of global investors intend to increase their low-carbon related investments to accelerate the transition to a clean-energy economy. The US$1 billion raised from the HSBC SDG bond, which matures in 2023 and was three times oversubscribed, will be used to support projects that offer broad social, economic and environmental benefits as aligned to seven selected SDG targets. These could include hospitals, schools, small-scale renewable power plants and public rail systems.

The newly launched Hong Leong ConnectFirst (HL ConnectFirst) is set to offer single sign-on access to a comprehensive suite of advanced cash, trade and foreign exchange solutions for corporate, commercial and SME customers of Hong Leong Bank Berhad (“HLB”) and Hong Leong Islamic Bank Berhad (“HLISB”).

HL ConnectFirst is in line with the bank’s aspirations to embed digital efficiency in business processes, and is infused with innovative features designed to assist business clients in managing their working capital requirements. 

AmBank is the pioneer bank to introduce Mobile Application Terminal (MAT), its latest innovation that provides Auto Finance Instant Approval in the Malaysian auto industry market.

MAT allows users to submit loan applications, capture documents’ images as well as obtain immediate approval within 30 minutes if all required conditions are fully met.