US$6bn Worth Of Green Bonds Issued: HKMA

The city’s defacto central bank said on Thursday that the government had issued close to US$6 billion worth of green bonds in multiple currencies, marking the biggest issuance to date.

In a statement, the Monetary Authority said the issuance was five times oversubscribed, with US$30 billion worth of orders placed.

The deal is the SAR's biggest green bond sale yet, beating the US$5.75 billion issuance in January.

The bonds are denominated in Euros, Renminbi (RMB), and US dollars and will be listed on the local bourse and in London from Wednesday next week.

The total amount of US dollar bonds issued is US$2.25 billion, with a maturity ranging from three to 10 years, and yields ranging from 4.34 percent to 4.04 percent.

The total Euro bonds issued is €1.5 billion, with a four-year and nine-year maturity, and yields ranging from 3.41 percent to 3.85 percent.

The total amount of RMB bonds issued is 15 billion yuan, which is 50 percent more than the green bonds issued in January this year.

The maturity ranges from two to 10 years, with yields ranging from 2.7 percent to 3.3 percent.

Finance chief Paul Chan said the huge interest from international investors in the SAR's latest tranche of green bonds shows their recognition of Hong Kong's efforts in sustainable development.

He added that the offering is also a positive step in the development of the yuan.

“The offering has included our first 10-year RMB green bond, which helps to extend the offshore RMB yield curve and continues to enrich offshore RMB product offerings, promoting RMB internationalisation in an orderly manner," he said.

The financial minister also pledged to continue to regularly issue green bonds to promote innovation and further develop the market.