SFST: Hong Kong Aims for Green Future with Ambitious Sustainability Goals and Innovative Finance Strategies

Speech by SFST at Greenway 2026 - Driving Sustainability Through Innovation

Following is the speech by the Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, Mr Christopher Hui, at Greenway 2026 - Driving Sustainability Through Innovation today (June 23):

Harvey (Ambassador and Head of Office of the European Union to Hong Kong and Macao, Mr Harvey Rouse), Johannes (Chair of the European Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong, Mr Johannes Hack), ladies and gentlemen,

Good afternoon. It is my great pleasure to join you all today for the fifth edition of The Green Way.

The Green Way is more than a theme; it is a shared journey. It is our commitment to leave behind a legacy of clean skies, verdant landscapes, and sustainable opportunity for generations to come. It is also a statement of hope - that our world can thrive without compromise, fuelled by green innovation, collaboration, and purpose.

Here in Hong Kong, we stand ready to lead the charge for a greener future. We have set the target of a 50 per cent reduction in carbon emissions before 2035 and carbon neutrality before 2050. The Chief Executive's 2025 Policy Address also underscored sustainability as a cornerstone of Hong Kong's future development. These are ambitious goals, and finance is the engine that powers this transformation.

Last month, I was in Central Asia attending the Asian Development Bank's Annual Meeting in Uzbekistan. During the meeting, member economies discussed not only how to reshape global value chains amid a complex and rapidly changing landscape, but also - and this was a recurring theme - how to use finance to support green and sustainable development. This includes funding renewable energy infrastructure and channelling long-term capital into transition projects. Many nations are facing the dual challenge of economic transformation and climate resilience. Hong Kong's answer lies in being the "super connector" and "super value-adder" - channelling global capital to where it is needed most for green projects.

Hong Kong is now the world's largest cross-border wealth management centre. We are also the global largest offshore Renminbi (RMB) business hub. This unique combination means we do not just talk about mobilising capital; we have the institutional infrastructure and deep liquidity pools - both in RMB and other major currencies - to direct significant funds towards credible green and transition projects across Asia and beyond.

The statistics speak volumes. Hong Kong has been the top arranger of green and sustainable bonds in Asia for eight consecutive years since 2018.

Last year alone, the total volume of green and sustainable debt issued or arranged in Hong Kong exceeded US$76 billion. Of this, bonds arranged in Hong Kong amounted to approximately US$38 billion, accounting for 40 per cent of the regional total. Just last month, the Ministry of Finance issued its first-ever RMB green sovereign bonds in Hong Kong - a strong vote of confidence in our platform.

We are not just doing traditional bonds. Innovation is key. Since 2019, we have issued approximately HK$258 billion equivalent of government green bonds. In November 2025, Hong Kong issued the world's first digital green bonds that integrated tokenised central bank money - settling in both e-CNY and e-HKD. This is a practical application of fintech to enhance transparency and efficiency in green capital markets.

A robust market also requires trust. To combat greenwashing and guide capital efficiently, we need high-quality, comparable data.

Hong Kong has set the target to fully adopt the sustainability disclosure standards of the International Financial Reporting Standards (ISSB Standards). The International Financial Reporting Standards Foundation has confirmed Hong Kong as one of the first jurisdictions targeting full adoption of the ISSB Standards.

Our Roadmap on Sustainability Disclosure, published in late 2024, provides a clear pathway for large publicly accountable entities to fully adopt the ISSB Standards no later than 2028. This ensures that when you invest in Hong Kong, you are investing with confidence in reliable, decision-useful information.

We are also building a robust classification framework for defining environmentally sustainable activities to drive capital flows towards credible projects. In January this year, we published Phase 2A of the Hong Kong Taxonomy for Sustainable Finance after extensive consultation. The coverage is expanded from four sectors (energy, transportation, construction and waste) to six sectors with the addition of two new sectors - manufacturing and ICT (information and communications technology). Apart from climate change mitigation, Phase 2 of the Taxonomy has a new environmental objective: climate change adaptation, so that we cater not only for activities to reduce the cause of climate change but also in the meantime, measures to minimise its impacts.

On carbon markets, Hong Kong has built the infrastructure. Our Core Climate platform is an international carbon marketplace that connects capital with verified climate projects. It offers quality voluntary carbon credits from over 60 projects verified by Verra and Gold Standard, with more than 130 registered participants. We are working closely with carbon exchanges in the Greater Bay Area to test cross-boundary carbon trade settlement. We see Core Climate as a key node for linking global demand - including from the European Union of course - with verified carbon credit projects across Asia and beyond.

The HKSAR (Hong Kong Special Administrative Region) Government will continue to work closely with the industry and all stakeholders to develop Hong Kong as a leading green and sustainable finance hub. We will keep building on our strengths - from our world-class green bond market and internationally aligned taxonomy, to our Core Climate platform.

We very much look forward to continued collaboration with the European Union - on transition finance, carbon markets, and channelling affordable climate finance where it is needed most.Thank you.

The Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, Mr Christopher Hui, Photo source: reference image

CHP investigates confirmed Mpox case

The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health (DH) said today (June 23) that it is investigating a confirmed Mpox (also known as Monkeypox) case, and strongly urged high-risk target groups to receive Mpox vaccinations. Meanwhile, the public is advised to be vigilant and avoid close physical contact with individuals suspected of contracting Mpox.

The case involves a 44-year-old male. He developed a fever, pain and discharge in his lower body on June 11, followed by a rash on his face and trunk on June 17. During this period, the patient attended private clinics and a hospital on multiple occasions. On June 21, he attended a private hospital and was admitted for isolation treatment. He is currently in stable condition.

According to information provided by the patient, he has not been vaccinated against Mpox. During the incubation period, he had no travel history and had high-risk exposure at his home. No epidemiological linkages between this case and confirmed Mpox cases recorded in Hong Kong earlier could be identified so far. The CHP is continuing its epidemiological investigation of the case, will endeavour to contact individuals who had high-risk contact with the patient and will report the case to the World Health Organization.

Since 2022, Hong Kong has recorded a total of 92 Mpox cases (74 local cases and 18 imported cases), including the above-mentioned case. All patients were males. Epidemiological investigations revealed that most cases had high-risk sexual behaviour, including having sex with strangers or having sex without wearing condoms.

The Mpox vaccine can prevent infection and severe disease. The DH provides Mpox vaccination services for highrisk groups. The following high-risk target groups are eligible for Mpox vaccinations on a voluntary basis:

1. individuals with high-risk sexual practices, e.g. having multiple sexual partners, sex workers, or having a history of sexually transmitted infection within the past 12 months;
2. healthcare workersresponsible forcaring forpatients with confirmed Mpox;
3. laboratory personnel working with zoonotic pox viruses; and
4. animal care personnel with high risk of exposure in caseof Mpox occurrences in animals in Hong Kong.

High-risk target groups can receive Mpox walk-in vaccinations at any of the DH's Social Hygiene Service Clinics (SocHS) (namely Chai Wan SocHS, Wan Chai Male SocHS, Wan Chai Female SocHS, Yau Ma Tei Male SocHS, Yau Ma Tei Female SocHS, Yung Fung Shee SocHS, Fanling SocHS and Tuen Mun SocHS) and the DH's Yau Ma Tei Integrated Treatment Centre, without prior appointments.

Meanwhile, the DH's Kowloon Bay Integrated Treatment Centre and the Hospital Authority's Special Medical Clinics at Queen Elizabeth Hospital and Princess Margaret Hospital also provide Mpox vaccination services for their clients.

Mpox is not transmitted through respiratory droplets or aerosols in general, and transmission would not occur through social contact. The CHP reminds the public, especially those at higher risks of exposure, to take precautions and avoid close physical contact with persons or animals suspected of being infected. They should seek medical attention as soon as possible if they experience relevant symptoms, including rash, fever, chills, swollen lymph nodes, exhaustion, muscle pain, and severe headaches. They should not engage in activities with others that may involve contact with skin rash or body fluids.

For more details, please visit the CHP's page onMpoxandMpox Vaccination Programme.

Source: AI-found images