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The 2021 Hong Kong GSS+ market saw significant expansion, with USD 14bn in labelled debt from Hong Kong issuers and a quadruple increase in GSS+ debt arranged or issued in the city to USD 57bn. Growth was driven by the HKSAR Government's green bond programme and a diversifying issuer base, including real estate and financial corporates. The report highlights the emergence of transition finance and the adoption of the Common Ground Taxonomy to facilitate cross-border green finance between China and the EU.

The ASEAN sustainable debt market experienced rapid growth in 2021, with GSS debt issuance reaching USD 24 billion and sustainability-linked instruments reaching USD 27.5 billion. Singapore remains the regional leader, while the green theme continues to be the most popular. The report highlights the emergence of the ASEAN Taxonomy for Sustainable Finance and the growth of local currency issuances, particularly in Singapore and Thailand.

The ASEAN+3 sustainable debt market reached USD 449 billion by Q3 2021, driven largely by the People's Republic of China, Japan, and Hong Kong, China. While green bonds remain dominant, the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the issuance of social and sustainability-labeled instruments. Local currency (LCY) issuance represents 64% of the region's total sustainable debt, though this is unevenly distributed; Thailand has the highest LCY share at 98.5%, while Viet Nam and Indonesia rely heavily on foreign currencies. The report identifies barriers such as lack of market awareness, high transaction costs for small deals, and a shortage of bankable green projects. It recommends increasing sovereign GSS bond issuance, expanding the investor base through ETFs and indices, and establishing centralized sustainable finance platforms to improve project visibility.

The Indian GSS debt market experienced significant growth in 2021, reaching a cumulative volume of USD 19.5 billion, with green bonds dominating the landscape. While the market is primarily driven by non-financial corporates and focused on utility-scale renewable energy, there is emerging activity in sustainability-linked bonds and potential for expansion into electric vehicles, waste management, and climate-smart agriculture. The Indian government is supporting this growth through the Ministry of Finance's Sustainable Finance Task Force and the planned issuance of a domestic sovereign green bond in 2022.

The document outlines the financial landscape for nine Swedish cities—Gothenburg, Linköping, Lund, Malmö, Nacka, Örebro, Östersund, Västerås, and Vellinge—stating that achieving climate neutrality would require at least 19,271 SEK per capita per year until 2030. It details municipal funding inflows, including taxes, subsidies, and debt, and distinguishes between on-balance sheet investments (equity and debt) and off-balance sheet options like blended finance and crowdfunding. A significant focus is placed on green bonds, with the nine cities having issued 52 such bonds to raise 31.2 billion SEK for projects like renewable energy and clean transportation.

The report identifies a significant climate finance gap in the SADC region, estimating cumulative adaptation and mitigation needs at USD 200 billion for 2020-2030. While South Africa dominates the current market, the study finds that corporate issuers remain inactive compared to banks and sovereigns. Key barriers include a lack of bankable projects, limited institutional capacity, and shallow domestic capital markets in most member states. The report recommends strengthening the expertise of regulators and stock exchanges, establishing national champions, and incentivizing banks to develop eligible project portfolios.

The South African energy services market is expanding due to rising electricity costs, energy insecurity, and falling technology prices. The market is segmented into small-scale embedded generation (SSEG), energy storage, and energy efficiency, with a total available market estimated at R131 billion by 2035. Key opportunities include rooftop solar PV for commercial and industrial (C&I) and agricultural sectors, behind-the-meter battery storage, and innovative energy efficiency models like Cooling-as-a-Service (CaaS). The Western Cape is highlighted as a leading regional hub due to its supportive municipal policies and high uptake of SSEG.

The document identifies climate change as the primary health threat to humanity, noting that extreme weather events directly impact health and livelihoods, leading to involuntary migration. It advocates for strengthening public health systems through climate-resilient facilities, early warning systems, and a transition to low-carbon urban infrastructure. A critical gap is highlighted in funding, as less than 1% of international climate finance is currently allocated to health sector adaptation.

The briefing introduces an 'energy efficiency cost premium' method to isolate energy efficiency spending from total construction costs in green-certified buildings. Analyzing over 16,000 certifications from 2019-2020, it finds that incremental energy efficiency investments averaged USD 10.5 billion annually, representing only about 5% of the total cost of those buildings. The report highlights that green certifications are inconsistent indicators of energy performance, with over half of tracked assets achieving less than a 30% efficiency gain. It argues that current certifications often fail to align with 1.5°C or 2°C decarbonization pathways and recommends standardized asset-level reporting and a shift toward certifying retrofits in developed economies.

The FAST-Infra Sustainable Infrastructure Label (SI Label) is a voluntary framework designed to identify infrastructure assets that demonstrate significant positive sustainability performance. To qualify, an asset must meet baseline standards—primarily the IFC Performance Standards—and show a significant positive contribution to at least one of 14 sustainability criteria across four dimensions: environmental, social, governance, and adaptation & resilience. The framework mandates environmental and social safeguards, including the use of the Equator Principles 4 and the publication of Environmental and Social Impact Assessments (ESIA). It requires a structured process of declaration, disclosure, and reporting, and strongly encourages an independent external review to ensure market integrity and investor confidence.

The report finds that Jakarta's urban climate finance from 2015-2019 totaled USD 44.9 billion, heavily dominated by public funding and a single mega-project, the Giant Sea Wall. Despite having the highest fiscal capacity in Indonesia, Jakarta underutilizes private finance, which accounted for only 2% of total climate investment. The study recommends better alignment between the city, the central government, and satellite cities, alongside the adoption of innovative financing tools like green municipal bonds to reduce reliance on central government funding, especially given plans to move the national capital.

The report finds that Jakarta's climate finance from 2015-2019 was dominated by public funding, totaling USD 44.9 billion across 37 projects, with 83% of this amount committed to the controversial Giant Sea Wall project. Despite having the highest fiscal capacity in Indonesia, Jakarta's environmental spending remained low at 8.6% of its budget in 2017-2018, and private sector investment accounted for only 2% of total climate funding. The document recommends better alignment between Jakarta, the central government, and satellite cities, the implementation of climate budget tagging, and the use of innovative financial instruments like municipal green bonds to mobilize private capital, especially in anticipation of the capital city's relocation.

The report analyzes urban green finance in Hyderabad and Kolkata, finding that both cities are heavily dependent on state and central government funding. While Hyderabad has made significant progress in renewable energy and electric mobility, and Kolkata has excelled in e-bus adoption and wetland conservation, both face governance challenges due to overlapping mandates and limited financial autonomy. The study recommends harmonized climate budgeting, increased devolution of funds to urban local bodies, and the exploration of innovative financing mechanisms like green bonds and resilience bonds to bridge investment gaps.

In 2020, China's green bond market saw a 21% decrease in total issuance to 289.5 billion RMB, partly due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the rise of pandemic-related bonds. Despite the decline, the market showed progress in aligning domestic standards with international ones, notably through the 2020 draft Green Bond Endorsed Project Catalogue which removed clean coal projects. Non-financial enterprises and government-supported institutions showed strong growth, while financial enterprise issuance declined. A significant gap remains between domestic and Climate Bonds Initiative (CBI) definitions, primarily because some domestic bonds allow funds to be used for general corporate operating capital. The report also highlights a massive stock of unlabelled climate-related bonds, totaling 325 billion USD, primarily in the transport sector, presenting a major opportunity for future green labelling and refinancing.

The report provides a comprehensive overview of China's green asset-backed securities (ABS) market as of 2020, detailing the regulatory environment, market trends, and specific case studies. It highlights that while the market has grown significantly, it remains a small portion of the overall green bond market and is dominated by state-owned enterprises. The document suggests improvements in data transparency, standardization of contracts, and the expansion of green residential and commercial mortgage-backed securities to attract more international investors.

The report provides a comprehensive overview of China's green securitisation market, noting its growth to 85 deals totalling RMB115bn by the end of 2020. It details the regulatory landscape involving the PBoC, CBIRC, CSRC, and NAFMII, and identifies state-owned enterprises as the primary originators. The analysis highlights renewable energy and low-carbon transport as the dominant collateral themes and suggests improvements in transparency, standardisation of green loans, and credit rating soundness to attract more international investors.

The Chinese green bond market issued USD 44bn in 2020, a 21% decrease from 2019, partly due to the pandemic and a shift toward social-themed 'Pandemic Prevention and Control' bonds. While China remains a global leader, a significant portion of its issuance (USD 20.2bn) is not aligned with Climate Bonds Initiative (CBI) standards, primarily because local regulations allow proceeds to fund general working capital. However, the 2020 Green Bond Catalogue consultation draft marked a shift toward international alignment by removing 'clean coal' projects. Non-financial corporates, led by Beijing Jingneng Clean Energy, are becoming more prominent issuers, and there is a substantial pool of unlabelled climate-aligned debt, particularly in the transport sector, that presents refinancing opportunities.

The 2020 research identifies a global universe of USD 913.2 billion in unlabelled climate-aligned bonds from 420 issuers across 45 countries. Transport is the dominant theme, accounting for 55% of the volume, followed by Energy (24%) and Water (10%). China is the largest single source, representing 36% of the global total, while Developed Markets (DM) account for 50%. The report emphasizes a significant opportunity for refinancing, as over 40% of these bonds will mature by 2024, potentially increasing the labelled green bond market by 65% within nine years if transitioned. The analysis also highlights the role of the EU Taxonomy in improving disclosure and the potential for green hydrogen and electric vehicle infrastructure to drive future issuance.

The document introduces the Sustainable Asset Valuation (SAVi) methodology, a simulation-based tool designed to calculate environmental, social, governance, and climate risks, as well as externalities in infrastructure projects. It details the three-pronged modelling approach—system dynamics, project finance, and spatially explicit models—to provide a more comprehensive cost-benefit analysis than traditional financial valuations. The report provides sector-specific examples (energy, buildings, roads, wastewater, irrigation, and natural infrastructure) and outlines how these modules can be integrated into Indonesia's Vision 2045 (IV2045) system dynamics model to bridge top-down national strategy with bottom-up project implementation.

The 2021 State of Cities Climate Finance report finds that annual urban climate finance averaged USD 384 billion in 2017/2018, which is significantly lower than the estimated annual need of USD 4.5 to 5.4 trillion. Investment is heavily concentrated in OECD countries and China, with critically low levels in South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa. The report emphasizes that while cities act as providers of infrastructure and stewards of regulation, their ability to mobilize finance depends on national-level governance, city-level capacity, and the alignment of climate-specific financial instruments. It recommends strengthening municipal finance fundamentals, integrating carbon pricing into capital planning, and utilizing catalytic funding to de-risk private investment in developing economies.