The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and the People’s Bank of China (PBC) have jointly launched the China-Singapore Green Finance Taskforce (GFTF), after it was first announced late last year.
As part of the initiatives discussed at the 18th Joint Council for Bilateral Cooperation (JCBC) held in Singapore in November 2022, the GFTF seeks to strengthen bilateral ties and collaboration in green finance to support Asia’s transition to a low-carbon future.
At its first meeting held in Chongqing on Wednesday, the GFTF discussed several ideas to accelerate and boost green and transition financing flows between Singapore, China, the wider region and both the public and private sectors.
The taskforce said it will follow a triple-pronged approach to commence work on priority areas including:
- “Taxonomies and Definitions: MAS and PBC will work together under the International Platform on Sustainable Finance (IPSF) to achieve interoperability between the Singapore and China taxonomies, and will collaborate subsequently to enhance the use of the IPSF’s Common Ground Taxonomy, as well as deepen understanding of transition activities defined by China and Singapore.
- Products and Instruments: Singapore Exchange and China International Capital Corporation will establish a workstream to strengthen sustainability bond market connectivity between China and Singapore, including the issuances of and mutual access to green and transition bond products in China and Singapore.
- Technology: Metaverse Green Exchange and Beijing Green Exchange will establish a workstream that leverages technology to facilitate sustainable finance adoption, including piloting of digital green bonds with carbon credits.”
Gillian Tan, MAS’ Assistant Managing Director (Development and International) and Chief Sustainability Officer, was joined by Chair of the China Green Finance Committee, Dr Ma Jun, as co-Chairs of the taskforce. Other members also include senior representatives from financial institutions and green fintech companies based in Singapore and China.
“We are pleased to deepen our collaboration in green and transition finance with the establishment of the GFTF,” Tan said.
“The GFTF provides a platform for knowledge exchange and will galvanise collaboration between public-private participants from China and Singapore on concrete initiatives that will catalyse capital flows to support a credible and inclusive transition to a low carbon future for our countries and the region.”
This announcement follows further efforts between Singapore and the Western Region of China to enhance its financial connectivity.