June 2023

HONG KONG

Green and Sustainable Green theme dominatedDebt Market Briefing 2022 GSS+ bonds issued andarranged in Hong Kong
USD80.5bn GSS+ debt
arranged and issued in HK
in 2022; USD27.8bn bonds,
and USD52.7bn loans

This is the fifth iteration of the Hong Kong Green
Sustainable Debt Market Briefing, produced by
the Climate Bonds Initiative (Climate Bonds)
in association with the Hong Kong Monetary
Authority (HKMA) and the Hong Kong Green Finance
Association (HKGFA). This report covers analysis ofgreen, social, sustainability, transition bonds, and sustainability-linked debt
instruments (GSS+).1 Using Climate Bonds’ GSS+ datasets based on theplace of risk and HKMA’s approach by the place of arrangement or issuance,
this series of reports provides a comprehensive overview of Hong Kong’s
green and sustainable debt finance market.

Background
Hong Kong has formulated its own climate goals and strategies in
response to the Paris Agreement and the Central People’s Government’s
decarbonisation agenda. In January 2017, the Government of the Hong
Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR Government) announced
Hong Kong’s Climate Action Plan 2030+, setting a target of reducing thecity’s carbon intensity by 65% to 70% by 2030 from the 2005 baseline.2 In
November 2020, the Chief Executive of the HKSAR announced that Hong
Kong would strive to achieve carbon neutrality before 2050.3 Then, in
October 2021, the city set out specific strategies and actions in Hong Kong’s
Climate Action Plan 2050. The HKSAR Government announced that it would
devote about HKD240bn (USD31bn) to tackling climate change mitigation
and adaptation over the following 15 to 20 years.4
Hong Kong continues to strengthen its presence as the green andsustainable finance (GSF) hub for the region, building on its establishedstatus as an international financial centre. In May 2020, the Green andSustainable Finance Cross-Agency Steering Group (CASG) was establishedto support the orderly and credible scaling of Hong Kong’s GSF market.
The CASG is co-chaired by the HKMA and the Securities and Futures
Commission (SFC); other members include the Financial Services and theHong Kong Green Market Briefing 2022 Climate Bonds Initiative

Green remained the largest GSS+ themefrom Hong Kong issuers
20
Cumulative as at the end of 2021
152022 volume

10

USD Billions

2022 Hong Kong market analysis

50Green bonds Social Sustainability(GBDB)
bonds
bonds

SLB

Transition
bonds

Source: Climate Bonds Initiative

Treasury Bureau (FSTB), the Environment and Ecology Bureau, the Hong
Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEX), the Insurance Authority, andthe Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authority.

Overview of GSS+ market
In 2022, global GSS+ bond volumes fell year-on-year (YoY) for the first timein a decade as challenging macroeconomic conditions contributed to adrop in debt volumes across the board. GSS+ volume from Hong Kongissuers fell 60% YOY to USD5.3bn in 2022.5 Green bonds aligned with Climate
Bonds definitions (and consequently recorded in the Climate Bonds Green
Bond Database (GBDB)) accounted for 65% of the annual GSS+ volume.
Cumulatively, GSS+ bonds from Hong Kong issuers, and aligned with
Climate Bonds definitions reached USD27.2bn by the end of 2022, withgreen theme taking up a 76% share.

1GreenThe below analysis is based on the Climate Bonds GBDB as of
20 January 2023, unless otherwise specified.

In 2022, Hong Kong’s labelled green bonds dropped
49% YoY to USD7.0bn.
Climate Bonds identified USD3.4bn worth of Hong Kong
green bonds aligned with the Climate Bonds definition in
2022, a 65% decline YOY. The expectations and consequences of rising interest
rates fuelled the decline in bond issuance which extended to green bonds.
Climate Bonds updated its GBDB Methodology (Methodology) in July 2022with tightened criteria in more established sectors such as buildings andtransport. This resulted in the non-inclusion of some green bonds which
could have been included under previous screening guidelines. For example,
the updated Methodology now specifies a threshold of less than 50g CO2/pkm to the end of 2025 and zero emissions thereafter for low carbon vehicles.
As the green bond market matures and the need to decarbonise becomes
more pressing the assessment for inclusion in the GBDB will be further
tightened and a more granular level of disclosure will be required.

USD dominated Hong Kong green
bonds (by cumulative volume at
the end of 2022)
AUS 1%

CNH
10%

HKD
22%

The cumulative issuance from Hong Kong issuers included in the GBDB stood at
USD20.8bn by the end of 2022. Issuance from the HKSAR government accounted
for nearly half of the cumulative supply, followed by non-financial corporates andgovernment-backed entities. Property companies such as Swire Properties,
New World Development, Hysan, Hong Kong Land, Zhenro Properties
Group, Link REIT, Hang Lung Properties, Landsea Green Group haveissued green bonds. The most frequent issuer has been the MTR Corporation,
the local railway operator, which started pricing green bonds in 2016.
About 97% of Hong Kong green bonds (by volume) carried an external
review by the end of 2022. Second-party opinions (SPOs) prevailed with a
90% share. Another 7% of volume had obtained another form of external
review such as Climate Bonds Certification, assurance, or rating. Active
external review providers included Vigeo Eiris (now part of Moody’s
ESG Solutions), the Hong Kong Quality Assurance Agency (HKQAA),
Sustainalytics, CICERO Shades of Green (now part of S&P Global).

Over 70% of Hong Kong green
bond volume were benchmark
sized (USD500m+)

JPY <1%

97% of green bond volume
originating from Hong Kongobtained an external review
No external
review 3%

Other types ofexternal review 7%

Up to
100m
9%

EUR
10%

USD
57%

1bn ormore
44%

100m500m
18%

500m-1bn
29%

Source: Climate Bonds Initiative

SPO 90%Source: Climate Bonds Initiative

Source: Climate Bonds Initiative

Climate Bonds Green Bond Database (GBDB)Climate Bonds screens self-labelled debt
instruments from over 80 jurisdictions against
the Methodology (2022 version) to inform
inclusion in the Climate Bonds GBDB. By
applying the standard methodology, thisscreening exercise allows cross-market
comparison and global application.

Green Bond Database Methodology:
key updates in 2022
Climate Bonds is dedicated to ensuring rigor
and ambition in the green bond market andpromoting a credible economy-wide transition
toward a low carbon future.
Climate Bonds published its latest GBDB
Methodology in July 2022, with tightened
screening criteria in more established sectors
such as building and transport. Major changes
in assessment criteria are highlighted below.

Building
The assessment was tightened so that
only higher rated, well-establishedinternational and local certification schemes andenergy performance rating schemes are eligible
for inclusion. For example, in previous approaches
the GBDB Methodology accepted lower levelsof building certification than the LEED Goldproxy used for Certification, and this is no longer
acceptable.6 Refer to Annex E of the 2022 edition
for the list of Eligible Building Certifications.
In addition, The Methodology now specifies
a threshold of 30% improvement in energy
efficiency compared with a requirement of‘significant improvement’ in the previous version.

Transport
The assessment is accompanied withmore granular threshold indicators incertain subsectors. The updated Methodology

Hong Kong Green Market Briefing 2022 Climate Bonds Initiative

now specifies a threshold of less than 50g CO2/
p-km to the end of 2025 and zero emissions
thereafter for low carbon vehicles (electricvehicles or EVs, hybrids and hydrogen fuel cellvehicles), as well as for public transport buses
and coaches, and bus rapid transit (BRT).
The Methodology now also specifies the reporting
metrics for ship vessels of 5,000 GT or above.
Refer to Annex F of the 2022 edition for details.

Hydropower
The assessment for this asset
category was updated along with
the Climate Bonds Taxonomy,
which focuses on the power density and GHG
footprint of reservoirs. Consequently, theMethodology now adopts these specifications
as compared to the previous version. Excluded
deals may be included retroactively to reflect
the evolution of scientific thinking.

2

HKSAR Government Green Bond Programme(GGB Programme)

HKSAR leads government green bond issuance in the
Asia Pacific region
10

Sovereign or government GSS+ bond issuers have the power to scale up
green and sustainable finance more than any other issuer class. They makea special contribution to the market beyond capital raising.7 The HKSAR
Government has been a leader in issuing government green bonds (GGB) in
the Asia Pacific region.

Starting in 2019, the HKSAR Government had priced ten green bonds
amounting to USD9.8bn by the end of 2022 in a mixture of USD, EUR, CNY,
and HKD. This volume is more than any other government in the Asia
Pacific region, and similar to the combined sum of the sovereign deals fromIndonesia, New Zealand, Singapore, and South Korea.8 Hong Kong SAR was
the first government to price an inflation linked deal when in May 2022, it
added an HKD20bn (USD2.6bn) bond with a coupon linked to HKCPI. The
deal was also the largest retail green bond globally, allowing residents tocontribute directly to greening Hong Kong, while broadening the variety ofretail financial products in the city.
In February 2022, the HKSAR Government published an updated versionof its Green Bond Framework, reflecting Hong Kong’s latest climate
commitments and strategy and aligning with the latest international
standards and practices in the green bond market. It also added climatechange adaptation to the eligible project categories, to include projects andactivities addressing extreme weather and climate events.
The HKSAR Government has published three post-issuance reports to
inform the market of the allocation of the proceeds and the expectedenvironmental benefits of the financed projects. The Use of Proceeds (UoP)The GGB proceeds are used tofund 45 eligible projects fromfour eligible categories

6
4
USD Billions

In recent years, the HKSAR Government has maintained a low profile in
the international debt market, issuing three sukuk in 2014-2017 to support
the development of that market. However, the HKD200bn HKSAR GGB
Programme was established specifically to demonstrate the commitment
to promoting green finance and transforming Hong Kong into a moresustainable and liveable city. It also served to develop the market by
establishing benchmarks, demonstrating best practices in green bondissuance, and broadening green and sustainable finance offerings to attract
more market participation from international investors.

8

2
0
HKSAR Indonesia

Source:Climate Bonds Initiative; as of end of 2022

has financed 45 eligible projects across four categories: green buildings,
water and wastewater management, waste management and resource
recovery, and energy efficiency and conservation.
Climate Bonds welcomes the best post-issuance reporting practices
demonstrated in the GGB Programme and encourages private sector issuers
to follow suit to enhance transparency and credibility in the market.

HKEx remained most popular listing venue for China’s offshore
green bonds
The Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEx) remained the largest venue for China’s
offshore green bond listings in 2022, taking up 43% of the offshore volume
from Mainland China domiciled issuers. China’s largest offshore deals in
2022, including those from the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China(ICBC), China Construction Bank, Bank of China, Industrial Bank,
Agricultural Bank of China and Midea Investment Development, have
all used the HKEx as the or one of the offshore listing venue(s).

Green buildings take up
about half of GGB proceeds(as of 31 July 2022)
Waste management &resource recovery 18%

Energy efficiency& conservation 3

Energy efficiency& conservation 5%

Greenbuildings
19

Green
buildings
50%

Water & wastewater
management 28%

Source: Climate Bonds Initiative

Hong Kong Green Market Briefing 2022 Climate Bonds InitiativeFiji* South Korea issued a USD500m sovereign sustainability bond in 2019, which included green UoP. Thisdeal is not included in this chart.

Waste management &resource recovery 4

Water & wastewater
management 19

New Singapore South
Zealand
Korea*

10 best practice postissuance reporting
recommendations:9
1. Make information easy to find.
2. Provide comprehensive reporting.
3. Report regularly and consistently.
4. Display information clearly with graphics,
benchmarks, and comments.
5. Obtain post-issuance external reviews
to confirm allocations and verify impact
disclosure.
6. UoP: Disclose the funded projects both
at- and post-issuance.
7. Impacts: Disclose methodologies andspecify if metrics are estimated or measured
8. Impacts: Report absolute emissions
reduction relative to a specified benchmark
level.
9. Impacts: Provide project-level reportingwith bond and programme-level summaries.
10. Deliver on reporting commitments.

Source: Climate Bonds Initiative3

Other thematic bonds
The emergence of other thematic bonds such as social, sustainability,
sustainability-linked and transition bonds is essential to support the rapidtransition to a sustainable economy. Climate Bonds launched its Socialand Sustainability Bond Database (SSBDB) to complement its GBDB andprovide a more complete snapshot of the GSS+ debt market. SSBDB
offers transparency on global social and sustainability debt, ranging
from individual deal-level analysis to the identification of general market
developments and trends. Climate Bonds screens self-labelled UoP socialand sustainability debt instruments as eligible for inclusion in the SSBDB
against the SSBDB Methodology.14 Climate Bonds records but does not yet
screen transition-related bonds against thresholds or targets. As relevant
criteria at both activity and entity level are developed, Climate Bonds will
introduce screening for bonds and issuers in those sectors based on a
publicly transparent methodology.

Social and sustainability
2022 marked the first social bonds from Hong Kong, with
two issuers pricing a combined volume of USD1.6bn.
Both were screened and added to Climate Bonds SSBDB.
The New World Development Company Limited(NWD) issued a 5-year USD200m social bond, as partof a two-tranche deal under the NWD’s Sustainable
Finance Framework in June 2022. The net proceeds
were earmarked to finance or refinance UoP in eligiblesocial projects categories of access to basic infrastructureand essential services, affordable housing, socialeconomic advancement and employment generation.15 The Hong Kong
Mortgage Corporation Limited (HKMC) published its Social, Green andSustainability Financing Framework (SGSF Framework) in September 2022,
obtaining an SPO from Sustainalytics. In October, it priced a dual-tranchesocial deal comprising HKD8bn 2-year and CNH3bn 3-year bonds. The net
proceeds were earmarked to finance or refinance loans under the Special
100% Loan Guarantee Scheme.16 Other eligible social project categories
under its SGSF Framework include access to essential basic services such as
healthcare, affordable housing, access to affordable basic infrastructure andservices, which can be mapped to the UN Sustainable Development Goals(SDG), specifically SDG 1, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11.17
Climate Bonds recorded no sustainability bonds from Hong Kong issuers in
2022. Cumulative volume remained USD1.6bn, all priced in 2021.

SLB and Transition
Climate Bonds recorded one SLB deal from a Hong
Kong issuer in 2022, bringing the cumulative volume
to USD1.3bn by the end of 2022. The Towngas Smart
Energy Company limited (Towngas Smart Energy)
raised USD200m through a 5-year SLB in April 2022. The
bond was set up against two Sustainability Performance
Targets (SPTs), including the total photovoltaic installedcapacity and the solar energy sales to total energy sales
ratio with an observation date on 31 December 2025.18
Non-fulfilment of the SPTs would result in a 25bp coupon
step-up. Towngas Smart Energy announced its plan to expand into therenewable energy sector at the end of 2021.19
Climate Bonds recorded no transition bonds from Hong Kong issuers in 2022.
The cumulative volume remained the same as of end of 2021 at USD1.9bn.

Hong Kong Green Market Briefing 2022 Climate Bonds Initiative

Hong Kong plays a pivotal role linking
Mainland China and the worldHong Kong is the dominant offshore financing platform
for Mainland China companies, and as such canchannel the financing needs of the Mainland’s vast
decarbonisation efforts and support its green transition.
Local governments have leveraged this opportunity.
The Shenzhen Municipal People’s Government
first issued offshore municipal government bonds in 2021, and in
November 2022, priced a further RMB5bn (USD742m) which included
RMB2.6bn (USD386m) in green and blue bonds.10 The People’s
Government of Hainan Province also priced its inaugural issuanceof RMB5bn (USD742m) in offshore bonds in Hong Kong in the samemonth, comprising blue and sustainable bonds.11
The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (Greater Bay
Area or GBA) is a pilot zone, set up to identify innovative solutions
to improve cross-border capital flow towards green and sustainable
activities. The findings and recommendations emerged from the GBAGFA (Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Green Finance
Alliance) platform could inform financial policy decisions in the GBA
and inspire more pilot cross-border actions. The seven working
groups under the GBA-GFA have explored various aspects aroundthe formulation of the Common Ground Taxonomy (CGT)-basedtaxonomies , mutual recognition of standards and verification services,
green buildings, deep decarbonisation road map and transition
finance, low-carbon transition of supply chains, green technology,
and climate investment funds.12 Research conducted by the Standard
Chartered and World Resources Institute estimated that an additional
USD1.84tn would be needed to achieve carbon neutrality in the GBA
by 2060, pointing to the greatest potential of emission reduction
from clean electrification across sectors such as manufacturing, roadtransport and green buildings.13

Climate Bonds expands its Certification
Scheme to include corporate entities and SLBs
Certification under the Climate Bonds Standard v4 (CBS v4)
has expanded beyond UoP bonds to include non-financial
corporates and their SLBs. Launched in Q1 2023, the new
CBS v4 is a major development for Climate Bonds, which
has driven credible climate financing for over a decade. Drawing fromits experience in developing detailed sector criteria for assets, activities
and investments, Climate Bonds can also provide transparent sciencebased criteria for non-financial corporate entities, credible SLBs andsimilar instruments, and assurance for investors that sustainability
requirements have been met in respect of any certified issuance.
This work goes beyond sectoral transition pathways and includes
key governance elements that indicate a company’s preparedness totransition to net zero. Certification will be available for corporates withemissions already near zero as well thosewith activities in the high emitting sectors,
providing the corporate has suitably ambitious
performance targets and credible transition
plans. CBS v4 enables corporates aligned with
1.5-degree pathways, or those that will bealigned by 2030, to obtain certification. SLBs
issued by and in respect of the activities ofqualifying non-financial corporates can also
be certified under the CBS v4.

4

Market dynamics from a
broader perspective
To reflect the size of Hong Kong as an international
financial centre for green and sustainabledebt issuance, the HKMA adopts a different
methodology from Climate Bonds in measuring
the size of the green and sustainable debt market.

GSS+ debt issued in Hong
Kong increased by over 40%
YoY to reach USD80.5bn in
2022 according to HKMA
Issuance
volumein 2022

YoY
Change(%)

Bonds

27.8bn-11.2%

Loans

52.7bn+109.1%

Total

80.5bn+42.5%

Instrument
type

Coverage of GSS+ instruments by Climate Bonds
and HKMA in comparison
Data coverage

Climate Bonds Initiative

HKMA

Instrument
type

Bonds (Green, Social,
Sustainability, Transition, SLB)20

Bonds (Green, Social,
Sustainability, SLB) and Loans(Green, Social, SLL)

ScopeInstruments from Hong Kongissuers21

Bonds arranged in Hong Kong,22
and loans issued in Hong Kong23

Green bonds remained the major
type of GSS+ bonds
SLBs 2%

Sustainability
bonds 23%• Green and sustainability bonds collectively
made up over 90% of the market. Social
bonds and SLBs remained niche witharound 6% and 2% share respectively.

Financial
institutions
38%
Green bonds
70%

Over USD52bn of GSS+ loans were
issued in Hong Kong in 2022, more thandouble 2021.
• SLLs accounted for over two-thirds of the
GSS+ loan market in Hong Kong. Loans(as opposed to bonds) have been widelyadopted as a general corporate purpose
green financing tool.

Corporate real estate17%

Social bonds 6%

SLLs made up over two-thirdsof the GSS+ loan market

Financial institutions and realestate corporates were collectively
major GSS+ loan borrowers
Government &developmentbanks 3%Social loans 1%• Private sector issuers, particularly financial
institutions (35%) and real estate corporates(17%), formed the bulk of the issuer universe
for GSS+ bonds in Hong Kong.
• Mainland entities continued to drive market
growth, accounting for over 80% of GSS+
bonds by issuance size.

Government &development banks 10%

Corporate- others
35%

Over USD27bn of GSS+ bonds werearranged in Hong Kong in 2022, capturing
more than one-third of the Asian green
and sustainable bond market.
• Despite the overall challenging market
environment, the GSS+ bond issuance segment
in Hong Kong remained relatively stable witha modest 11% decrease YOY and an issuancevolume of USD27.8bn in 2022.

Corporate issuers accounted
for 90% of GSS+ bond issuanceGreen loans
30%

Corporate- others
40%

Sustainability-linked loans• Similar to GSS+ bonds, financial institutions
and real estate corporates were the major
borrower groups, collectively accounting
for over 50% of the GSS+ loan liabilities inHong Kong.

Hong Kong Green Market Briefing 2022 Climate Bonds Initiative

69%

Financial
institutions
32%

Corporate- real estate
25%
All graphs: HKMA, according to HKMA methodology

5Market development
and outlook
2022 saw a sharp drop in
GSS+ bond volume originatingfrom Hong Kong issuers
but witnessed tremendous
growth in labelled green andsustainable debt (bonds andloans) arranged in the territory. This reflects Hong
Kong’s growing importance as a regional andinternational GSF hub.
Globally, some progress has been made in thedevelopment of green finance, but more needs tobe achieved to reach transition to net-zero. Morethan USD2tn of green bonds have been issued
to date but the market must grow aggressively toreach Climate Bonds’ target of USD5tn per yearby 2025. Hong Kong can play an important role
to mobilise the capital flow required to support
both its own transition and that of Mainland
China, contributing to building a green andsustainable future for generations to come.
Climate Bonds highlights three drivers of growthfor Hong Kong’s GSS+ market in 2023 and beyond.

1. HKSAR Government
is committed to theachievement of its climate
goals and its position as a
GSF hub for the region
Tackling climate change has the potential
to power vast economic growth. As Asia’sinternational financial centre, Hong Kong is
a strategically placed GSF financing platform
and can galvanise action on transition while
addressing its own climate agenda.
In the next five financial years starting from 202324, the HKSAR Government plans to increase
annual green bond issuance under the GGB
Programme to HKD65bn (USD8.3bn), as well as

expand the scope to cover sustainable financeprojects.24 The scale of this contribution willcontinue to develop the local GSS+ market byincreasing the types of projects, currencies, andproducts, attracting a broader range of investors
and issuers to join the space. Meanwhile,
government participation in the GSS+ bonds,
relying on stringent reporting and verification
practices, brings visibility to the highest
standards of integrity and helps set expectationsof the private sector.25 These actions will guidehigh-quality development in Hong Kong’s GSS+
debt market.
The HKSAR Government actively encourages
more issuers to join the GSS+ market withcredible bonds meeting the expected
standards through initiatives such as it Greenand Sustainable Finance Grant Scheme.26
Administered by the HKMA, the scheme has
subsidised eligible bond issuance and external
review expenses for GSS+ debt instruments
issued in Hong Kong since its launch in 2021.
Issuers have embraced the scheme, and grants
for over 230 GSS+ debt instruments had been
awarded by the end of April 2023. This hasenriched the overall GSF ecosystem in Hong
Kong by attracting more financial institutions
and external reviewers to set up or expand theirpresence locally.

2. Clear definitions tounderpin further scaling
The HKMA is leading thedevelopment of a Hong Kong
green classification system(taxonomy). The resulting
taxonomy will facilitate easy navigation among
the CGT, the Mainland China and the European
Union’s taxonomies.27 A well-defined green bondtaxonomy can mitigate greenwashing which can
impede progress to address climate change andpose financial stability implications.28

Hong Kong Green Market Briefing 2022 Climate Bonds Initiative

Climate Bonds Standard v4 offers certification for
SLB instruments, assets, and whole entities, andcan contribute to an inclusive transition. The G20
Transition Finance Framework published in 2022
also provides an important building block, basedon which various markets can develop measuresto accelerate transition finance.
Moreover, the current rulesets around green
investments are being broadened to encompass
resilience. This moves beyond investments that
reduce direct physical impacts of extreme weather
and includes those that address the underlying
vulnerability of people and ecosystems to climatechange. This is particularly pertinent for Hong
Kong which is vulnerable to the impacts ofextreme weather events such as typhoons andheavy rainfalls, as experienced in recent years.

3. Hong Kong can scale
access to international
finance for Mainland China.
Hong Kong has vast potential
to channel the decarbonisationand transition financing needsof Mainland China due to its strategic positionand high-profile within the international financecommunity. This power is being further amplified
through initiatives such as a local taxonomy,
the Government Green Bond Programme, andthe resultant green finance infrastructure that
continues to develop.
Issuers from the public and private sectors canleverage this potential to scale up their financing
needs following the likes of the local governmentsof Shenzhen and Hainan Province (describedabove). Hong Kong’s presence in regional andinternational markets can introduce a broader
range of investors to support China’s transition,
but more urgently, can increase the investment
opportunities for those with dedicated mandates
seeking to diversify sustainability portfolios.

6Endnotes
1. Climate Bonds does not have coverage on sustainability-linked
loans (SLLs).
2. The HKSAR Government press release. 20 January 2017. Hong
Kong’s Climate Action Plan 2030+ announced. https://www.info.gov.
hk/gia/general/201701/20/P2017012000736.htm
3. The HKSAR Government. 25 November 2020. The Chief Executive’s
2020 Policy Address. https://www.policyaddress.gov.hk/2020/eng/
p125.html
4. The HKSAR Government press release.8 October 2021. Government
announces Hong Kong’s Climate Action Plan 2050. https://www.info.
gov.hk/gia/general/202110/08/P2021100800588.htm
5. Climate Bonds Initiative does not cover green loans in this report.
6 Climate Bonds Initiative. 2022. Green Bond Database
Methodology. https://www.climatebonds.net/files/files/CBI_Method_
Criteria_03A.pdf
7. Climate Bonds Initiative. 13 March 2018. Sovereign Green Bond
Briefing. https://www.climatebonds.net/files/files/Sovereign_
Briefing2017.pdf
8. They city has issued an equivalent of nearly USD16bn green bonds
as of end of April 2023. HKMA. 22 April 2023. Sustainability Report
2022. https://www.hkma.gov.hk/eng/data-publications-and-research/
publications/sustainability-report/2022/
9. Climate Bonds Initiative. March 2019. Post-issuance reporting in
the green bond market. https://www.climatebonds.net/files/reports/
cbi_post-issuance-reporting_032019_web.pdf
10. The average exchange rate of USDCNY in 2022 of 6.7366 is used
for conversion.
11. The Hainan Province blue bond of RMB1.2bn issued in November
2022 was not included in the Climate Bonds GBDB, because Climate
Bonds Taxonomy does not cover assessment against sustainablefishery and aquaculture, which was part of its Green, Social, Blue andSustainability Framework.
12. HKGFA press release. 24 April 2023. 2023 GBA-GFA | HKGFA Meeting– Strengthening GBA Sustainable Finance Collaboration. https://www.
hkgreenfinance.org/2023-gba-gfa-hkgfa-meeting-strengthening-gbasustainable-finance-collaboration/
13. Standard Chartered press release. 27 April 2023. Standard
Chartered and World Resource Institute report: USD1.84 trillion

investment needed to achieve carbon neutrality in Greater Bay Areaby 2060. https://av.sc.com/hk/content/docs/hk-stanchart-publishesdecarbonisation-report-eng.pdf
14. Climate Bonds Initiative. 2022. Social & Sustainability Bond
Database Methodology. https://www.climatebonds.net/files/files/CBISocial-and-Sustainability-Bond-Methodology-14092022.pdf
15. New World Development Company Limited. May 2022. New World
Development Sustainable Finance Framework. https://sustainability.
nwd.com.hk/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/New-World-DevelopmentSustainable-Finance-Framework_May-2022.pdf
16. HKMA press release. 25 october 2022. HKMC’s inauguralsocial bond issuance. https://www.hkma.gov.hk/eng/news-andmedia/press-releases/2022/10/20221025-4/#:~:text=Press%20
Releases,-25%20Oct%202022&text=The%20transaction%20
marks%20the%20world%27s,billion%203%2Dyear%20social%20
bonds.
17. HKEX. 26 October 2022. HKMC Offering Circular. https://www1.
hkexnews.hk/listedco/listconews/sehk/2022/1026/2022102600165.
pdf
18. Two observation dates are set in the Towngas Smart Energy
Sustainability-Linked Financing Framework: 31 December 2025 and
31 December 2028.
19. Towngas Smart Energy press release. 14 April 2022. Towngas
Smart Energy Leads the Industry in issuing its first Sustainbility-linked
Bond. https://www.towngassmartenergy.com/getattachment/MediaResources/News/2022/港華智慧能源領先同業-首推可持續發展掛鈎債
券/20220414_Press-Release_EN.pdf.aspx?lang=en-US&ext=.pdf
20. The coverage in the 2021 Hong Kong Green and Sustainable
Market Briefing included loans. Climate Bonds did not record any
green loans in 2022 coverage. Climate Bonds screen labelled green
bonds, labelled social and sustainability bonds for inclusion in its
databases.
21. Climate Bonds refers to the following rule to determine how toassign a country/jurisdiction to each bond. For unsecured bonds,
the country/jurisdiction is determined by the issuer’s domicile. If it isa wholly-owned subsidiary, it becomes the parent group’s domicile.
For secured bonds, the location of the assets being used as collateralis considered. However, a parent guarantee or other recourse

Supported by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority

Supported by the Hong Kong
Green Finance Association

to a parent company in another domicile would influence thedetermination. Climate Bonds does not take currency denomination,
listing venue, or similar factors into account to determine the country/
jurisdiction.
22. The HKMA considers a bond as arranged in Hong Kong if the
majority of its arranging activities takes place in Hong Kong.
23. The HKMA considers a loan as issued in Hong Kong if bankbranches in Hong Kong represent most of the lender commitments.
24. The HKSAR Government. The 2023-24 Budget. https://www.
budget.gov.hk/2023/eng/index.html
25. BIS quarterly review. September 2021.Sovereign and sustainablebonds: challenge and new options. https://www.bis.org/publ/
qtrpdf/r_qt2209d.htm
26. For details of the Green and Sustainable Finance Grant Scheme,
please refer to the HKMA website at https://www.hkma.gov.hk/
eng/key-functions/international-financial-centre/bond-marketdevelopment/tax-concessions-and-incentive-schemes/
27. HKMA. Sustainability Report 2022. https://www.hkma.gov.hk/
media/eng/publication-and-research/sustainability-report/2022/3_
Building-a-Sustainable-Financial-System.pdf
28. HKMA. 21 November 2022. Greenwashing in the corporate green
bond market. https://www.hkma.gov.hk/media/eng/publication-andresearch/research/research-memorandums/2022/RM08-2022.pdf

Gold Partner – Standard Chartered Bank

Lead author: Manshu Deng
Editorial support: Caroline Harrison
We thank the following individuals for their input: Ting Wang,
and Grace Wong (HKMA), Tracy Wong Harris (HKGFA)
Suggested citation: Deng, M., Hong Kong Green and Sustainable Debt
Market Briefing 2022, Climate Bonds Initiative 2023.
Design: Godfrey Design, Joel Milstead© Climate Bonds Initiative, June 2023
www.climatebonds.net
Disclaimer: The information contained in this communication does not constitute investment advice in any form and the Climate Bonds Initiative is not an investment adviser. Any reference to a financial organisation or debt
instrument or investment product is for information purposes only. Links to external websites are for information purposes only. The Climate Bonds Initiative accepts no responsibility for content on external websites. The
Climate Bonds Initiative is not endorsing, recommending or advising on the financial merits or otherwise of any debt instrument or investment product and no information within this communication should be taken as such,nor should any information in this communication be relied upon in making any investment decision. Certification under the Climate Bond Standard only reflects the climate attributes of the use of proceeds of a designated debt
instrument. It does not reflect the credit worthiness of the designated debt instrument, nor its compliance with national or international laws. A decision to invest in anything is solely yours. The Climate Bonds Initiative accepts noliability of any kind, for any investment an individual or organisation makes, nor for any investment made by third parties on behalf of an individual or organisation, based in whole or in part on any information contained
within this, or any other Climate Bonds Initiative public communication.

Hong Kong Green Market Briefing 2022 Climate Bonds Initiative

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