Hong Kong prices record $20b digital green bond

Offering marked Hong Kong’s fourth digital green bond issuance.

The government has priced around $20b in digital green bonds denominated in Hong Kong dollars (HKD), Renminbi, US dollars and euros under its Sustainable Bond Programme.

The issuance is the world's largest digital bond and the Government's fourth digital green bond issuance.

The HKD tranche used traditional settlement rails, tokenised central bank money and tokenised deposits powered by EnsembleTX. This marks the world's first digital bond to integrate HKD tokenised deposits.

The move supports a more integrated digital ecosystem and provides a foundation for exploring programmable features of digital money.

The issuance also adopted the International Capital Market Association's Bond Data Taxonomy Version 2.0 to improve data consistency, interoperability and end-to-end automation across the bond lifecycle.

Financial Secretary Paul Chan said the $20b issuance was oversubscribed, showing strong market demand for tokenised products issued in Hong Kong.

The multi-currency offering caters to the asset diversification needs of local and overseas investors and incorporates technologies to advance innovation in the bond market, he said.

“The Government will continue to issue tokenised bonds on a regular basis, expand the use cases for the underlying technologies, and harness fintech to empower the bond market's continued development," Chan said.

SFinancial Services & the Treasury Secretary Christopher Hui said the issuance demonstrates the Government's commitment to innovative bond issuance and green transformation.

It will also promote understanding of sustainable development and fintech while strengthening Hong Kong's