Hong Kong launches international carbon council, to support cross-border trading

Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited, or HKEX, has launched the Hong Kong International Carbon Market Council, the exchange said in a statement late July 5, with developing an international carbon market as its principal focus.

HKEX said the Council consists of leading corporates and financial institutions and targets to facilitate the development of a sustainable finance ecosystem in Hong Kong, mainland China and beyond.

"The launch of the Council will lay the foundation for Hong Kong's growth as a premier carbon hub in Asia and beyond as well as contribute to global efforts towards achieving a low-carbon economy," HKEX said in the statement.

HKEX disclosed in the statement that the inaugural members of the Council includes: Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited Hong Kong Branch, Bank of China (Hong Kong) Limited, BNP Paribas Hong Kong Branch, Cathay Pacific Airways Limited, China Energy Conservation and Environmental Protection Group, China Forestry Group Corporation, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (Asia) Limited, Standard Chartered Bank (Hong Kong) Limited, State Power Investment Corporation Limited, Tencent Holdings Limited and The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited.

The newly established Council will gather insights from members on the development of an efficient and effective Hong Kong–based international carbon market, HKEX said.

HKEX has made several moves recently to explore carbon trading opportunities in the Asia Pacific region, leveraging Hong Kong's position as a leading global financial center.

Last November, HKEX joined the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero, or GFANZ, and the Net Zero Financial Service Providers Alliance, or NZFSPA, as parts of its ongoing commitment to the long-term sustainable development of global financial markets, HKEX's website showed.

In March 2022, HKEX signed a memorandum of understanding with Guangzhou-based China Emissions Exchange, or CEEX, to jointly explore the development of a voluntary carbon emission reduction program in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, HKEX's website showed.

In March, HKEX also published a feasibility study with the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong, highlighting that Hong Kong has the potential to act as a bridge to the world for mainland China's domestically certified voluntary carbon credits, called China Certified Emission Reductions, or CCERs.