On September 14, 2022, the Fourth Plenary Meeting of the Green Investment Principles (GIP) for the Belt and Road was held in Beijing and Hong Kong. Moderated by Dr. MA Jun, Chairman of China Green Finance Committee, and Sir William Russell, former Lord Mayor of the City of London, the meeting convened more than 100 representatives from GIP member institutions participating in person and online.
The GIP has gradually expanded its influence over 4 years of operation as an international initiative in sustainable finance. As of 14th September, GIP has 44 signatories and 14 supporting institutions from 17 countries and regions, with total assets held or under management exceeding USD 41 trillion.
During the meeting, the GIP secretariat presented main findings from the 2022 GIP Annual Report, Green Transition and the Belt and Road. The report, as the third one since 2020, captured the steady progress made by GIP member institutions in terms of governance, risk, investment footprint, and disclosure. Members have also met almost all yearly goals in the medium-term vision, Vision 2023, which was set in 2020.
GIP working group leaders recapped past deliverables, including a paper on climate transition in the Belt and Road region and a series of capacity building webinars. They have also shared workplans for the coming year. As the first GIP regional chapter, the Central Asia Office has established close partnerships with local financial community, including both financial institutions and regulators since it was launched in May 2021.
To recognize the efforts and progress made by member institutions in implementing the principles, the GIP has established five awards to encourage continued progress in the future.
ZHANG Qingsong, Deputy Governor of People’s Bank of China, emphasized in his keynote speech GIP’s critical role in greening the Belt and Road and becoming a new frontier of international collaboration. GIP can help promote green and sustainable finance standards, enhance the connectivity of green capital markets, and build capacity.
Sir William Russell, co-chair of the GIP Steering Committee, addressed the importance of China-UK cooperation in green finance and maintaining the climate commitments against the current headwinds.
Rhys Gordon-Jones, Counsellor of Financial and Professional Services of the British Embassy Beijing, shared the UK’s achievement in green finance in the past year and resonated that China and the UK should strengthen cooperation in green finance, including fostering knowledge exchange through the GIP.
Dr Patrick Lau, Deputy Executive Director of Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) highlighted Hong Kong’s unique advantage in sustainable finance and expressed HKTDC’s anticipation to work more closely with the GIP and provide opportunities to green enterprises through collaboration on the Green Project Database.
Yaseen Anwar, former Governor of the State Bank of Pakistan and Chairman of GIP Central Asia Regional Chapter, pointed out that in this context of geopolitical turbulence, GIP has an important role to play in mobilizing capital to developing countries and help them achieve sustainable development.
“2023 marks the 10th year of the BRI and we should bear in mind that green is the color of the Belt and Road,” said Dr. Ma Jun, co-chair of the GIP Steering Committee. He pointed out that GIP should stay close to the global trends of sustainable finance and make continued efforts in promoting sustainable finance standards, improving the quality of disclosure, and developing transition and biodiversity finance.
Below is the list of 2022 GIP Awards Winners:
1. Winners for the GIP Implementation Award
1) UBS
2) Credit Agricole-CIB
3) DBS
2. Winners for the GIP Green Finance Transaction Award
1) Société Générale
2) ICBC
3) Siyuan Investment
3. Winners for the Best Leadership/Capacity Building Award
1) Standard Chartered Bank
2) Swiss Re
3) Industrial Bank
4. Winners for the Best Supporting Institute Award
1) PwC
2) Deloitte
3) Refinitiv
5. Winners for the Best Progress Award
1) Habib bank
2) Bank of China
3) Silk Road Fund