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The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority:

     The International Capital Market Association (ICMA) and the HKMA co-hosted the 2018 Green and Social Bond Principles Annual General Meeting (AGM) and Conference today in Hong Kong.

     The Green Bond Principles (GBP) and Social Bond Principles (SBP) AGM & Conference is an established, high-profile gathering for leaders in the green bond market and increasingly for the growing social and sustainable bond markets and other asset classes in sustainable finance. The conference today brought together some 800 industry professionals from around the world, including investors, issuers, intermediaries, external reviewers and rating agencies, the official sector including policy makers and market supervisors, stock exchanges, law firms and other professional services firms, to debate advances in this market and the requirements for its future success.

     This is the first time that this flagship international green finance event is being held in Asia, signifying the growing influence of Asia in the development of green bonds in particular, and sustainable finance more widely, as well as recognising Hong Kong’s status and importance as an international financial centre.

     The conference sessions covered developments in the global green, social and sustainability bond markets which raise capital for projects that provide environmental and social benefits. The agenda at the conference was particularly focused on the increasing maturity of these markets and the convergence towards market-based global standards. There was also a specific session on progress in the Green Bond Market of Hong Kong and mainland China.  

     The AGM of the GBP and SBP preceded the conference and would be followed by the release of the 2018 update of the GBP, SBP and Sustainability Bond Guidelines, alongside new publications providing guidance designed to further strengthen and interconnect the market ecosystem. In 2017, it is estimated that more than 85 per cent of issuance in the global Green Bond market was aligned with the GBP.

     The ICMA’s Chief Executive, Mr Martin Scheck, opening the conference said, “Holding this event today in Hong Kong is recognition both of the progress made and the future potential of the Asian market for sustainable finance. Market and official initiatives aligned with the Green Bond Principles have accelerated growth in Asian markets for green, social and sustainability bonds. The official stance in Asia has been very supportive and innovative, with mainland China showing early leadership in Green bond issuance.”

     The Chief Executive of the HKMA, Mr Norman Chan, said, “I believe that time has come for asset owners to take a more progressive and proactive stance in supporting green finance.  Asset owners, be they pension funds or sovereign wealth funds, can make a difference in promoting long-term environmental sustainability by taking concrete steps to invest in green finance.  We in the HKMA are prepared to play our part and I sincerely hope our peers will join us in owning and pursuing the goal of supporting green finance.”
 
About the HKMA

     The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) is the government authority in Hong Kong responsible for maintaining monetary and banking stability. It was established in April 1993 by merging the Office of the Exchange Fund and the Office of the Commissioner of Banking.

The HKMA’s policy objectives are:

• to maintain currency stability within the framework of the Linked Exchange Rate System;
• to promote the stability and integrity of the financial system, including the banking system;
• to help maintain Hong Kong’s status as an international financial centre, including the maintenance and development of Hong Kong’s financial infrastructure; and
• to manage the Exchange Fund.

     For more details, please refer to www.hkma.gov.hk
 
About the ICMA

     The International Capital Market Association (ICMA) is the self-regulatory association for the international capital market with over 530 member institutions from more than 60 countries, including banks, issuers, asset managers, infrastructure providers, law firms, rating agencies and other market participants. It performs a crucial central role in the market by providing industry-driven standards and recommendations for issuance, trading and settlement in international fixed income and related instruments. ICMA’s market conventions and standards have been the pillars of the international debt market for 50 years. ICMA liaises closely with regulatory and governmental authorities, to ensure that financial regulation promotes the efficiency and cost effectiveness of the capital market. For more details, please refer to www.icmagroup.org.

The Green Bond Principles (GBP), Social Bond Principles (SBP) and Sustainability Bond Guidelines (SBG)

     The green, social and sustainability bond market aims to enable and develop the key role debt markets can play in funding projects that contribute to environmental sustainability or/and socio-economic challenges globally. The Green Bond Principles, Social Bond Principles and Sustainability Bond Guidelines (the “Principles”) promote integrity in this market through guidelines that recommend transparency, disclosure and reporting. The 2018 editions of the GBP and SBP remain framed by four core components (Use of Proceeds, Process for Project Evaluation and Selection, Management of Proceeds and Reporting), as well as recommendations for the use of External Reviews. It also continues to underline the importance of the use of the recommended disclosure templates for issuers and the content of external reviews. read more

     Following is the transcript of remarks by the Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Matthew Cheung Kin-chung, at a media session today (June 14) after the kick-off ceremony of the Pilot Scheme on Corporate Summer Internship on the Mainland and Overseas:
 
Reporter: Do you fear there will be more chaos in LegCo after last night’s incident?
 
Chief Secretary for Administration: I think everybody should behave rationally, and certainly I really deplore the situation that a security guard was injured in the scuffle. It’s entirely unnecessary, unwarranted. The Express Rail, the joint checkpoint arrangement, is very important to Hong Kong. The Express Rail in fact will be a very important locomotive, engine, for Hong Kong’s long-term economic growth and social development, so there is an urgency to get the bill passed as quickly as possible and I’d really appeal to everybody to deal with the whole thing rationally and of course peacefully. OK?
 
Reporter: There are rumours that the Chief Executive forced Fanny Law out. Is that true or it’s just rumours?
 
Chief Secretary for Administration: Mrs Fanny Law is an outstanding leader, outstanding Chairman. I’ve known Mrs Law for a very long time. We worked together in the Education Department. I was the Director of Education and she was the Secretary for Education and Manpower. I respected her and she is very capable, very dedicated, so no question of ability here. It is purely a question of the timing to keep abreast with the long-term development of innovation and technology in Hong Kong and also the future plans of the Science Park. So we mustn’t read too much into this so-called arrangement. OK?
 
(Please also refer to the Chinese portion of the transcript.)  read more

     At its meeting today (June 14), the Land and Development Advisory Committee (LDAC) was briefed by the Development Bureau (DEVB) on two applications under the facilitation scheme for provision of pedestrian links by the private sector in areas outside Kowloon East (the Scheme). The applications involve the provision of two footbridges and a subway in Kowloon Bay and Wan Chai. The LDAC was also consulted by the Task Force on Land Supply (TFLS) in the context of the public engagement (PE) exercise on land supply.
 
     Members reaffirmed the benefits brought about by the Scheme through providing 24-hour barrier-free pedestrian links for the community. Members offered their comments on the two applications (location plans are in the Annex), and considered that both applications facilitated walkability. Taking into account assessment results based on the Scheme’s established evaluation mechanism, Members generally supported the DEVB’s recommendations to waive the premium payable for lease modifications arising from the construction of the three proposed pedestrian links under the two applications. With the LDAC’s support, the recommendations for premium waiver will be duly submitted to the Executive Council for consideration.
 
     Members were also briefed by the TFLS on the 18 land supply options and related issues put forward to the community in the five-month PE exercise that started on April 26, 2018. Members expressed their appreciation and support of the TFLS’ work, and shared their views and observations on various short-to-medium, medium-to-long and conceptual options, as well as on the overall PE arrangements and the follow-up. The TFLS took note of Members’ valuable views and will consider them when preparing its recommendations to be submitted to the Government, tentatively by the end of 2018. read more

     Two new special exhibitions entitled “Above and Beyond” and “Semper Paratus – The Government Flying Service” will be held at the Hong Kong Science Museum from tomorrow (June 15). The former exhibition will enable members of the public to experience the fun of flying on a simulated journey from the ground to the sky or even the edge of space, while the latter will introduce the daily work of the Government Flying Service (GFS) and its important role in emergencies.
 
     The opening ceremony was held today (June 14). Speaking at the ceremony, the Permanent Secretary for Home Affairs, Mrs Cherry Tse, expressed the hope that the new exhibitions will enhance the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) capabilities of students and young people, provide them with an enlightening and inspiring interactive learning experience, and help broaden the horizons of young visitors and motivate them to continue to participate in STEM developments in the future.
 
     The “Above and Beyond” exhibition, which is sponsored by Boeing, offers an unprecedented interactive demonstration of human advances in aviation and aerospace, from the first powered flights to the newest innovations on earth and in space. Visitors can venture into the five main zones of the exhibition to interact with a number of flight-related exhibits. Visitors will also be able to experience a ride to the edge of space in a simulated space elevator, or test their own supersonic fighter-jet design in a virtual high-speed flying competition, as well as experience flying like a bird in a flock using motion-sensing image capture.
 
     The “Semper Paratus – The Government Flying Service” exhibition introduces the daily work of the GFS and its important role in emergency services, such as providing search and rescue and emergency air medical services, assisting in firefighting, performing photography for aerial surveys and supporting other government departments. The exhibition will include videos as well as various tangible objects including a fixed-wing training aircraft, scaled-down models of the service fleet, the main rotor blade and turboshaft engine of a helicopter, an air-droppable life raft and a specialised bucket used for aerial firefighting.
 
     Other officiating guests attending the ceremony included the Boeing Company’s Vice President of Communications, Mr Charlie Miller; the Controller of the GFS, Captain Michael Chan; the Acting Director of Leisure and Cultural Services, Dr Louis Ng; and the Museum Director of the Hong Kong Science Museum, Ms Paulina Chan.
 
     The two exhibitions are presented by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department, with the Hong Kong Science Museum co-organising them with Boeing and the GFS respectively. Both will run until October 17. The Hong Kong Science Museum is located at 2 Science Museum Road, Tsim Sha Tsui. For details, please visit http://hk.science.museum/ or call 2732 3232.

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     The Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, Mr James Lau, attended the 10th Lujiazui Forum 2018 in Shanghai today (June 14).

     Mr Lau first attended the opening ceremony in the morning, then took part in a plenary session on “Opportunities and Challenges in Fintech, Inclusive Finance and Green Finance”, where he spoke on Hong Kong’s strengths and opportunities.

     He said that given Hong Kong’s status as a leading international financial centre with a developed financial sector, sound rule of law and robust regulatory regime, together with its unique position connecting the Mainland with the rest of the world, Hong Kong has every advantage to develop FinTech.

     He said he was pleased to see that many world-renowned financial and tertiary institutions and research centres had chosen to set up laboratories, incubators and accelerators in Hong Kong in recent years.

     In addition, some Mainland technology giants are keen to leverage on Hong Kong’s ecology to support and finance the development of FinTech startups and set up research laboratories and training institutes to groom talents. He also noted that given the concerted efforts by the Government and regulators, Hong Kong has seen a bloom in FinTech developments.

     He added that Hong Kong would tap the opportunities of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Bay Area development and collaborate with the cities there to advance the development and application of FinTech.

     The theme of this year’s forum is “Shanghai’s Development towards an International Financial Center in the New Era”. It is jointly organised by the Shanghai Municipal People’s Government, the People’s Bank of China, the China Banking & Insurance Regulatory Commission and the China Securities Regulatory Commission, providing a high-level global platform for influential government officials, regulators, financial leaders and scholars to discuss major financial issues and foster international financial co-operation.

     On the margins of the forum, Mr Lau met with the Director-General of the Shanghai Municipal Government Financial Services Office, Mr Zheng Yang. Mr Lau said that Hong Kong and Shanghai are both important international financial centres of China, and enhancing financial co-operation between the two sides would be conducive to the further opening up of the financial services sector in the Mainland.

     Mr Lau will visit the Shanghai Stock Exchange and Alipay’s Shanghai branch tomorrow (June 15) and meet with the senior management team of Fosun International Limited before returning to Hong Kong in the afternoon.

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