China’s Ministry of Finance (MOF) announced the completion of a new green bond offering, the second-ever by the central government, raising RMB 6 billion (USD$887 million) for environmental initiatives ranging from clean transportation to pollution reduction.
The offering drew very strong demand, with the order book reaching RMB 62.4 billion (USD$9.2 billion), with the issuance more than 10 times oversubscribed. The issuance included 3-year and 5-year maturity bonds of RMB 3 billion each, oversubscribed by 9.8x and 11x, respectively.
The offering follows China’s inaugural green bond issuance in April 2025, which also raised RMB 6 billion, with the bonds listed on the London Stock Exchange. The issuance last year drew an order book of RMB 47 billion. The new offering was made on the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong.
Hong Kong Financial Secretary Paul Chan said:
“This issuance will further enhance the yield curve for Hong Kong’s offshore RMB bond market, provide a new investment benchmark for international capital, and attract more cross-boundary RMB financing and trading activities to Hong Kong. It will also support the efficient matching of global capital with the country’s high-quality green projects.”
Proceeds from the offering will support eligible green expenditures under China’s Sovereign Green Bond Framework. Published early last year, the framework lists eligible categories for green bond expenditures as including Clean Transportation, Sustainable Water and Wastewater Management, Environmentally Sustainable Management and Restoration of Living Natural Resources and Land Use, Marine Ecosystem Protection and Restoration, Pollution Prevention and Control, and Resource Utilization and Recycling.
