"Earth Day Forum 2026" held in Hong Kong to strengthen the city's position as an Asian green and sustainable financial services hub.

Recently, Friends of the Earth Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Green Finance Association, and the China SIF co-hosted the Earth Day Forum 2026. The aim was to connect to the future development direction of the country, leverage Hong Kong's advantages in connecting mainland China with global markets, and further consolidate its leadership position as the hub of green and sustainable financial services in Asia. The forum featured two thematic panel discussions. The first theme was to explore how Hong Kong's professional services can construct a transparent and accountable ESG index and climate data ecosystem, effectively connecting global investors with green projects, fully unleashing the potential of green and sustainable capital, and driving the real economy towards low-carbon transformation. The second theme was to build a sustainable certification ecosystem in Hong Kong. In recent years, Hong Kong has made outstanding achievements in promoting green finance and green technology. This year's budget also mentioned that Hong Kong will actively cooperate with the national "dual carbon" target and green low-carbon development strategy, actively promote the development of green industries and green transformation of enterprises, fully reflecting the government's active strengthening of Hong Kong's position as a regional hub for green finance, and consolidating Hong Kong's leadership role in green and sustainable bonds. With the continuous growth of capital, technology, and talent demands, green transformation will bring tremendous business opportunities to Hong Kong. Mr. Ye Guangtao, Chairman of Friends of the Earth Hong Kong, pointed out that sustainable development is no longer a marginal issue but the core of economic and financial decision-making. He said, "As an international financial center, Hong Kong has excellent legal traditions and regulatory frameworks that are in line with international standards, including the International Sustainability Standards Board's disclosure criteria. In addition, Hong Kong's extensive professional community covering areas such as banking, insurance, accounting, and law is the pillar of financial integrity and resilience, capable of integrating international standards into capital allocation and creating long-term value. Mr. Fung Wai-kin, Vice Chairman of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, pointed out that expanding the scale of climate financing is no longer just a vision, but an urgent priority. Hong Kong's opportunity lies in leveraging its market depth and international integration advantages to translate commitments to sustainable development into credible and investment-worthy decisions. By reducing market frictions and providing the transparency needed by global capital, Hong Kong is not only involved in green transformation but also assists the region in facing the transformation with greater certainty and certainty. Mr. Yang Yonghang, Head of Sustainable Banking Development at the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, believes that as an international financial center and a green finance hub in the region, Hong Kong plays a key role in guiding more funds to green and sustainable activities and supporting the region's transition to a low-carbon economy. By strengthening risk management, enhancing transparency, promoting innovation, filling talent and knowledge gaps, Hong Kong is further developing into the preferred sustainable financing platform in the region and globally. Dr. Guo Peiyuan, Chairman of China SIF and Chairman of Shangdao Ronglv, pointed out that Hong Kong's unique competitive edge in developing sustainable finance is backed by advantages of being connected to both the mainland and the international markets. Guo believes that Hong Kong has laid a good foundation in green bonds, sustainable information disclosure, and talent development and can continue to lead in cutting-edge areas such as transformation information disclosure, biodiversity finance, and sustainable reporting certification in the next steps.