Co-organisers

- Friends of the Earth (HK)

- Financial Services Development Council

- China Sustainable Investment Forum

Event Synopsis

Financial institutions play a crucial role in allocating capital towards climate-resilient development and facilitating the transition to a net-zero economy. Despite significant growth in green finance over the past decade, investments in high-carbon sectors for transitioning purposes have fallen short due to the lack of common standards and accountability mechanisms. Financial institutions also face mounting pressure from stakeholders and market competition to prioritize lending to environmentally friendly, sustainable, and socially responsible projects, while divesting from industries engaged in carbon-intensive activities. To bridge this gap, transition finance emerged to support the whole-of-economy transition, in the context of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), towards lower and net-zero emissions and climate resilience.

In Hong Kong, transition finance has been identified by the Green and Sustainable Finance Cross-Agency Steering Group as a priority for 2024 to solidify the city’s position as a leading sustainable finance hub. Integrating transition considerations in the promotion of sustainable finance development will be a key part of the policy strategy.

This forum will discuss several important pillars of transition finance, including:

1.Transition finance product innovation: How can innovative and reliable (high quality) financial products, such as sustainability-linked bonds, be developed to finance transition?

2. Climate related financial disclosure: How should financial institutions and companies disclose climate-related information based on international standards, such as IFRS S2 and TCFD?

3.Transition risk management for financial institutions: How could climate scenario analysis, stress testing, and such be used to measure and manage transition risks for financial institutions?

Event Details

Date: April 22, 2024 (Mon)
Time: 14:30 to 17:00
Venue: 35/F, SPD Bank Tower, One Hennessy, 1 Hennessy Road, Hong Kong

Language: English
Format: In-person forum with live broadcast (ZOOM)