for green finance ( cgf ) under the infrastructure financing facilitation office ( iffo ). the cgf will serve as the focal point for capacity building and experience sharing. as most of you are aware, iffo has already become an active facilitator for capacity building in infrastructure investments and it would be logical and timely for the new cgf to be set up to promote capacity and expertise in green finance. only yesterday, iffo co - organised a seminar with the chinese ministry of finance and ifc on esg and impact investing. so the cgf will provide a one - stop shop in capacity building for green finance for the financial industry, especially banks, in the coming months. we are already in discussion with the ifc on how to leverage their expertise on this. furthermore, i would like to mention that the cgf, together with the ifc, will coorganise the next climate business forum in hong kong in early 2020. this climate business forum is the ifc ’ s flagship event to discuss trends and business opportunities relating to climate change and sustainability. in addition to green finance, the forum will also cover topics such as green city, buildings, infrastructure, transportation and energy storage etc. so i look forward to your participation and support of the future activities of the cgf. conclusion 9. ladies and gentlemen, in today ’ s forum, we have arranged two panels, chaired by eddie yue and arthur yuen respectively, to elaborate on and discuss the initiatives and measures i have just mentioned. it would be useful for us to receive your comments and feedback. these initiatives and measures require persistence, dedication, and collaborative efforts of all the stakeholders : regulators, industry practitioners, international bodies, environmental groups. we must all work together. thank you very much. 3 / 3 bis central bankers'speeches

norman t l chan : green finance - turning momentum into action opening remarks by mr norman t l chan, chief executive of the hong kong monetary authority, at the hkma green finance forum, hong kong, 7 may 2019. * * * distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, 1. thank you all for attending today ’ s green finance forum organised by the hkma. since the paris agreement was reached in december 2015, international efforts in combating climate change have gathered enormous momentum. when i was in washington dc last month to attend the imf spring meetings, the imf managing director, christine lagarde, in presenting the global policy agenda, highlighted the importance for international collaboration to confront climate risk and what the imf will do to support this effort. earlier the bank of england and banque de france affirmed their commitment to support and promote green banking. these are welcomed developments because climate change, as we all know, is one of the major risks threatening the well - being of mankind. according to the imf, in the past four decades, we have witnessed the warmest years on record and the number of natural disasters more than doubled. so we gather today not to debate whether we need to combat climate change but what we, as the key stakeholders in the financial system, can and should do about it. 2. we all appreciate that climate change must be tackled on a global basis and across different sectors of the economy. how the banking and financial system operates will clearly have an impact on the way in which climate risk is managed or reduced. the hkma, in support of the mission to reduce climate risk and to achieve sustainable finance, would like to launch three sets of measures. green and sustainable banking 3. in september 2017, i announced seven measures that the hkma would undertake to bring hong kong into the new era of smart banking. the main objective of the smart banking initiatives is to promote financial innovation, better customer experience and financial inclusion. what i am going to propose today is to enlarge the ambit of this exercise to “ smart and sustainable banking ”. we all appreciate the damages and economic losses caused by increased frequency and ferocity of natural disasters arising from global warming and climate change. the increased risk of business disruption and adverse impact on collateral value of properties also pose real threat to the banking system. so it is now time for the hkma and the banking industry to take a more proactive approach to manage climate risk by pursuing “ green and sustainable banking ”.