HSBC Mauritius has reached another key milestone this year on its net zero transition and future of work strategy by relocating to a LEED Gold certified building at Icon Ebene.
This LEED certification stands for healthy, efficient, cost and energy-saving green buildings, improving every employees’ carbon footprint. Employees can now experience office buildings of the future, in alignment with the future of work. The official inauguration took place on Monday 28 November 2022 and was graced by the Governor of the Bank of Mauritius, Mr Harvesh Seegolam; The British High Commissioner, HE Charlotte Pierre; and Mr Philip Fellowes, Chairman HSBC Mauritius.
The new Head Office sports designer-inspired lattices and lush greenery, in an aesthetically pleasing setting. The location is easily accessible and will become even more so when commuters start using the Ebene Metro Express Station which is only 100 metres away.
Commenting on the relocation, Bonnie Qiu, CEO of HSBC Mauritius, said, “We are delighted by the move to our New Head Office at Icon Ebene as this unleashes a unique opportunity for us to re-imagine the way we work in line with HSBC Group’s future of work principles. The intent lies in reinventing the workplaces to shift towards a more flexible, hybrid, collaborative and innovative model, while maintaining a focus on employee wellbeing and productivity. We take pride to be the trend setters of these new ways of working in Mauritius. Icon Ebene was primarily picked for its LEED Gold – certification which implies better efficiency in terms of energy consumption and waste management. The move to this building marks progress for HSBC Mauritius in terms of the Global Sustainability Index and HSBC’s own transition to net zero by 2030. Our new office bears many Mauritian design features, and our meeting rooms have been named after our much loved Mauritian beaches and waterfalls.”
She concluded on the note that HSBC had been in Mauritius for over a 100 years, and hoped that everyone could see that “HSBC continues to invest in this market to bring a world of opportunities to our customers, colleagues and partners.”
Philip Fellowes, Chief of Staff for Asia Pacific and Chairman of HSBC Mauritius Board of Directors, added that he was delighted to witness this achievement: “The move to Icon Ebene is a great leap forward for HSBC Mauritius. Icon Ebene helps reduce our carbon footprint, consistent with our transition to net zero strategy to become a net-zero bank. Icon Ebene enables our colleagues, to adopt new ways of working, positively impacting their wellbeing, consistent with our energise for growth strategy to inspire a dynamic culture.”
He concluded on the hope that 2023 would be a year of economic rebound, noting that, at HSBC, the bank is really committed and motivated to energise for growth. “Mauritius is very much part of our international market growth strategy. I like the fact that the country has been able to diversify its corridor trade to ensure that our internationalism agenda transcends beyond the traditional markets. I’d like to thank all my colleagues here for their hard work that has resulted in all the positive milestones and achievements this year which include this historic relocation.“
For her part, Charlotte Pierre, commented: “I am delighted to join you for the official launch of HSBC’s new head office here in Ebene which marks a significant milestone, and it is a milestone that has been achieved after a few bumpy years, particularly for the world of international banking and finance. The last 20 years have seen the global banking landscape change due to numerous factors such as consecutive global financial crises, political crises, emerging technologies, changing demographics, emerging cyber risks – these are just some of those big shifts which we have seen, but it is the COVID-19 crisis that has influenced the landscape most of all. Banks had to accelerate their digital programmes overnight to enable their customers to use their basic services remotely. Banks had to be resilient and it is clear that a resilient financial services sector runs on highly skilled professionals valued by firms who keep customer needs and expectations at the heart of what they do, while delivering innovative reforms and keeping up with cutting-edge technology. And that is what I believe HSBC, including Mauritius, is all about.“
She concluded on the note that workplaces continue to evolve and “as we respond to climate change and also respond to COVID, we have to move on. HSBC is truly a model for the Mauritian business sector as to what a modern, inclusive and sustainable workplace can look like. I applaud HSBC’s commitment to contribute to the net zero strategy, an ambition that the UK Government has pledged to achieve by 2050.“
The final speaker of the evening was Mr Harvesh Seegolam, who noted: “It is very appropriate for me to put on record the excellent work that HSBC has being doing so far in Mauritius and to congratulate and commend the team for moving towards more modernisation, more innovation, digitalisation and also sustainability – very important parameters which I have defined for the future of how banking needs to evolve in our country. It is even more important to see the continuous growth and expansion of banks, and more so, international banks in our country as it brings in more trust and confidence amongst the investors community and the business community. Significantly, the presence of banks like HSBC on our shores would further encourage Mauritius to strengthen itself as an international financial centre of choice and excellence in this part of the world. I am sure that HSBC, together with other banks present on our shores, would continue complementing this key role that Mauritius is playing in driving growth, investments, movement of capital as well as trade finance in our part of the world, linking Asia and Africa – as also London.”
He concluded on the note that collaboration is key to the future of banking, and was happy to look back and see how the measures put in place over the last few years, including the MIC, continued to play a crucial role in ensuring financial stability in the country. He mentioned how banks, including HSBC, were instrumental in the exercise of putting their heads together and seeing how they wish the sector to be shaped over the next decade. He commended HSBC Mauritius for already adhering to many of the measures for the way forward that were just defined as part of this overarching exercise and expressed the hope that HSBC would enjoy many more years as a thriving financial institution in Mauritius.
