Asset managers have a responsibility as stewards of capital, to engage companies in your portfolios to ensure appropriate climate risk management and objective reporting. MAS will support the review of the Singapore Stewardship Principles, to provide specific guidance on stewardship with respect to environmental considerations. The review will be undertaken by an industry group led by Stewardship Asia Centre. Fourth, work with other central banks and regulators to shape internationally consistent ESG reporting and disclosure. MAS is leading the work at the Network for Greening the Financial System to set out supervisory expectations on climate-related disclosures by financial institutions. We are participating in efforts by the International Platform on Sustainable Finance to develop a “common ground taxonomy” to highlight commonalities across existing green taxonomies and contribute to greater comparability in data definitions. MAS is on the IOSCO Sustainable Finance Task Force, which is working on improving securities issuers’ sustainability-related disclosures. MAS is also working with our ASEAN peers to harmonise taxonomies and standards. There has been good progress in this space, with the development of the ASEAN Green, Social and Sustainability Bond Standards. BUILD KNOWLEDGE AND CAPABILITIES IN SUSTAINABLE FINANCE Our third area of focus is to build knowledge and capabilities in sustainable finance. Portfolio managers and analysts need to be upskilled with the knowledge and capabilities to execute and evaluate sustainability investment strategies. They must develop a keen understanding of climate risk and its various possible effects. They must be able to design innovative ESG scoring methodologies, investment strategies, and product offerings.

Total ESG assets in the region more than doubled, from about $ billion in 2019 to about $ billion in 2020. 12 Of the record $ billion global inflows into ESG funds last year, Asia attracted about $ billion. 13 But we need to do much more to allocate the capital that is necessary to support Asia’s transition to a sustainable future. As a centre for green finance in Asia, Singapore will play a purposeful role in this effort. We will do this in two ways: as the platform for developing green financing solutions customised for Asia; and 2/7  BIS central bankers' speeches  as the channel through which global capital is directed at meeting Asia’s transition needs. There are three areas where we need to intensify efforts: broaden the range of green financing solutions and markets; improve the consistency and transparency of ESG reporting and disclosure; and build knowledge and capabilities in sustainable finance. BROADEN GREEN FINANCING SOLUTIONS AND MARKETS Let me begin with broadening green financing solutions and markets. I will highlight three strategies that Singapore is focusing on. First, facilitate the issuance of more established green financing instruments, such as green bonds and green loans. Bonds and loans are a familiar and key source of financing for corporates of all sizes. Green, sustainability, and sustainability-linked bonds and loans enable corporates to raise financing as they take up green projects, invest in green assets, or move towards more sustainable business practices.