Hong Kong, BIS develop platforms for green bond investing

[HONG KONG] Investing in Hong Kong's government green bonds may soon be possible in just a few clicks.

The financial hub's de facto central bank and the Bank of International Settlements have developed two prototype platforms intended to give retail investors easier access to such debt and allow them to track the environmental impact in real time.

The initiative, called Project Genesis, utilises blockchain technology that allows investors to track accrued interest and shorten transactions' settlement time from 2 days to "near real time," according to a video released by BIS, known as the central bank for central banks.

The city "has set ambitious carbon emission reduction goals. Tapping retail to realise aspiring green projects helps Hong Kong to fulfill its climate obligations under the Paris agreement," said Benedicte Nolens, head of the BIS Innovation Hub's Hong Kong centre.

Hong Kong last month released its Climate Action Plan 2050, an effort to reach net-zero carbon emissions. The government has sold US$2.5 billion of green bonds this year, according to data compiled by Bloomberg, more than half of such debt sold by issuers in the city. That as global issuance of notes for funding environmental, social and governance goals may hit US$1 trillion in 2021, more than doubling last year's total.

In another milestone for financial technology efforts in Hong Kong, more than 1 million accounts have been opened with virtual banks in the city, HKMA chief executive officer Eddie Yue told reporters Wednesday after a panel at the Hong Kong FinTech Week conference.

BLOOMBERG