Singapore and China Establish Green Finance Taskforce to Strengthen Collaboration in Green and Transition Finance

On April 21, 2023, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) published a press release to inform of the establishment and inauguration of the new China-Singapore Green Finance Taskforce (GFTF). The taskforce – which is comprised of senior representatives and sustainable finance experts from financial institutions, green FinTech companies from Singapore and China, and representatives of MAS and the China Green Finance Committee – will „deepen bilateral cooperation in green and transition finance between Singapore and China and facilitate greater public-private sector collaboration to better meet Asia’s needs as it transitions to a low carbon future“. Its core focus will lie on the following issues:
(1) Taxonomies and Definitions: Under the International Platform on Sustainable Finance (IPSF), Singapore and China will work together to ensure interoperability between their respective taxonomies based on the so-called Common Ground Taxonomy which was created in 2021. Furthermore, both MAS and the PBC (People’s Bank of China) seek to deepen their understanding on each other’s transition activities.
(2) Products and Instruments: The two key exchanges or exchange operators in Singapore and China will work together to increase access to each others sustainable bonds markets which shall include the issuance of green and transition bond products cross-border.
(3) Technology: Metaverse Green Exchange and Beijing Green Exchange will work together to leverage technology in an effort „to facilitate sustainable finance adoption, including piloting of digital green bonds with carbon credits“.