Hong Kong Green and Sustainable Finance Cross-Agency Steering Group: Welcome Industry-Led First-Stage Transition Finance Practice Guidelines

On May 15, the Hong Kong Green and Sustainable Finance Cross-Agency Steering Group (Steering Group) welcomed the release of the Transformation Finance Practices Reference Guide - Phase One Report: "Optimizing Financial Resources to Support the Transformation of the Technology Industry" written by the Industry Working Group under its Transformation Finance Taskforce, further driving the development of transformation finance in Hong Kong. The report is based on the Steering Group's strategic focus for 2026-2028, which aims to expand the scale of transformation finance by providing practical guidance. It provides practical tools for financial institutions and companies to implement international frameworks and principles related to transformation finance, and promotes good practices in an industry-specific manner. The Working Group selected the Information and Communications Technology sector as the first industry to develop the reference guide. The Phase One report of the reference guide focuses on financing and investment at the institutional level, exploring how financial institutions can support their overall climate transformation strategies through general corporate financing. The report highlights commonalities between different internationally recognized frameworks, identifying a set of core information and indicators for institutional-level transformation in the Information and Communications Technology sector. This is crucial for financial institutions to better understand and evaluate organizational transformation strategies using this information. The report also illustrates through case studies how international principles and guidance related to transformation finance can be applied in practice, addressing challenges in implementing feedback from the market. The Working Group will continue to advance its work, with subsequent phase reports covering investment in economic activities and due diligence governance and stakeholder engagement. Eddie Yue, Co-Chair of the Steering Group and CEO of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, said, "The release of the report is encouraging and demonstrates the industry's enthusiasm and determination to explore transformation finance practices. We encourage market participants to actively implement the reference guide in the report, leverage Hong Kong's unique advantages as a hub for sustainable finance in Asia, and drive the scale development of transformation finance." Leung Fung-yee, Co-Chair of the Steering Group and Executive Director of the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong, said, "This reference guide reflects the Steering Group's commitment to collaboration with the industry, translating high-level international principles and standards into practical, objective, and easily understandable guidance. This is also one of the first rounds of work to implement transformation finance in individual industries and real situations, promoting more complete disclosure of information, efficient capital allocation, and alignment of stakeholders' expectations."