Hong Kong Treasury: The scale of ESG fund assets under management in the first half of the year is approximately HK$116.14 billion.

The Hong Kong Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau revealed that as of June 30, 2025, there were a total of 204 ESG funds approved by the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission, with a total asset management scale of approximately $148.9 billion (equivalent to over HK$1.1614 trillion). Regarding green bonds, a spokesperson for the Hong Kong Treasury Department stated that the total amount of green and sustainable debt issued in Hong Kong in 2024 exceeded $84 billion (or HK$652 billion). According to statistics from the International Capital Market Association, the total amount of green and sustainable bonds arranged for issuance in Hong Kong is approximately $43 billion (equivalent to HK $335.4 billion), leading the Asian market for seven consecutive years since 2018, accounting for about 45% of the total in the region. However, data for the first half of this year has not been released. Regarding the latest developments in promoting green finance in Hong Kong, the spokesperson stated that the government will continue to work with financial regulatory agencies and the industry to promote green and sustainable finance in Hong Kong through a multi-pronged approach, providing infrastructure and impetus conducive to market development. Specifically, the latest progress of major measures includes: (1) Government Sustainable Bond Program: In June of this year, the Hong Kong government issued approximately HK$21 billion equivalent in green bonds under the "Government Sustainable Bond Program," covering RMB, USD, and Euro. This issuance attracted broad participation from global investors in Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and the Americas, with subscription amounts ranging from about 3.3 times to 12.5 times the issuance amount. As of June this year, the government had successfully issued a total of approximately HK$240 billion equivalent in green bonds, providing an important benchmark for Hong Kong and potential issuers in the region. Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury Christopher Hui attended a meeting of the Finance Committee of the Legislative Council yesterday and pointed out that the government has promoted the development of Hong Kong's green finance and green bond market through the issuance of green bonds. As of June this year, the government has issued approximately HK$240 billion equivalent in green bonds, covering HKD, RMB, Euro, USD, and various tenors, providing an important benchmark for Hong Kong and potential issuers in the region; Through the relevant plan, the government has also financed 116 eligible green projects in the region. Hui also said that Hong Kong is committed to developing a deeper and broader financing platform. As of July, several local governments in the Mainland have issued a total of 40 billion RMB of local government bonds in Hong Kong, including green bonds, blue bonds, sustainable bonds, social responsibility bonds, etc. (2) Market Development: The government continues to encourage more green and sustainable financing activities in Hong Kong through the "Green and Sustainable Finance Subsidy Program" to attract more financial and professional service providers (including external review agencies) in Hong Kong to establish a holistic ecosystem for green finance. As of early August this year, more than 590 green and sustainable debt instruments issued in Hong Kong have been subsidized under the "Program", involving a total debt amount of over $160 billion. (3) Sustainable Disclosure: The Hong Kong Treasury Department launched the "Hong Kong Sustainable Disclosure Roadmap" in December last year to provide a clear path for large... Furthermore, the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission's "Quarterly Report" just released continues to promote the development of ESG funds, while strictly monitoring and preventing greenwashing practices, for ESG fund supervision and addressing the ESG data gap. In addition, in April, the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission collaborated with the academic community to optimize greenhouse gas emission calculation tools, incorporating market feedback to add multiple functions, including the inclusion of emission factors from different years to enhance the accuracy of greenhouse gas emission calculations and generate detailed reports that clearly outline the calculation process, facilitating greenhouse gas emission reporting and third-party verification.