HSBC has appointed Natalie Blyth to the newly created role of global head of commercial banking sustainability, effective immediately.

In her new position, Blyth is tasked with driving HSBC’s sustainability plans within commercial banking, in collaboration with group chief sustainability officer Celine Herweijer, who the bank brought in from PwC in February last year. She will continue to report to Barry O’Byrne, HSBC’s CEO of global commercial banking.

“As we and our customers rise to the challenge of protecting our planet, it’s essential that we are ready and able to finance their sustainability transition plans,” says O’Byrne in an internal memo announcing Blyth’s job move, seen by GTR. “We will achieve continuous, profitable growth, while doing the right thing, by ensuring we take a market-leading position in this space for years to come. Success will require a clear, results-focused strategy and a dynamic, results-focused leader who will capitalise on the investments we are making in both products and skills.”

Blyth has spent the last 14 years at HSBC, most recently as global head of trade and receivable finance (GTRF). In the memo, O’Byrne says that the bank will now run a process to appoint a permanent replacement for this role. In the meantime, Vinay Mendonca, global head of product, propositions and structuring, and Ajay Sharma, regional head of global trade and receivables finance, have been named as interim co-heads of GTRF.