Climate Business Forum: Asia Pacific 2025 Brings Together Global Leaders to Accelerate Private Investment for a Low-Carbon, Resilient, and Inclusive Future

Hong Kong SAR, China, September 9, 2025 - To spotlight the urgent need-and vast opportunity-for scaling private sector investment to accelerate the transition to a low-carbon, resilient, and inclusive future across the Asia-Pacific region, the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) today convened around 400 participants in Hong Kong SAR, China for Climate Business Forum: Asia Pacific 2025 ("the Forum").

Held as the cornerstone event of Hong Kong Green Week 2025, the one-day Forum brought together key stakeholders from across the global and regional climate business and finance ecosystem for action-oriented discussions on topics ranging from the role of private capital mobilization in the energy transition, to financing solutions for biodiversity and adaptation. BloombergNEF served as the Forum's Knowledge Partner.

"Emerging markets in Asia Pacific are seeking capital and innovative ideas to design and implement strategic solutions that will drive low-carbon, resilient and inclusive economic growth that creates jobs," said John Gandolfo, Vice President and Treasurer, Treasury & Mobilization at IFC. "Through this Forum, and with strong partners in HKMA and BloombergNEF, we are mobilizing the capital, insights, and leadership needed to deliver lasting impact in this region, both for people and planet."

"Hong Kong remains firmly committed to sustainability," said Darryl Chan, Deputy Chief Executive of the HKMA. "We are truly grateful to have some of the most experienced and visionary practitioners joining us at the Climate Business Forum: Asia Pacific 2025. It is through open and constructive dialogues like today's that we find our way forward with robust and affordable climate action."

Key Highlights from the Forum

The Forum featured high-level keynote addresses, panel sessions, scene setters, fireside conversations, and lightning talks focused on topics including:

· The road to Belem - Scaling investment to meet climate ambitions

· Investing in the energy transition

· The role of artificial intelligence in transforming the energy landscape in Asia Pacific

· The latest trends in climate policy

· Sustainable supply chain ecosystems

· Why carbon markets matter

· Turning biodiversity into a business opportunity

· Financing solutions for climate adaptation

Announcements

Twenty-six women-led climate startups from Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Thailand, and Viet Nam were announced as participants in She Wins Climate, a global, fast-track, investment readiness initiative led by IFC. Supported in Southeast Asia by the Governments of Canada and Australia and implemented by New Energy Nexus, the accelerator helps women entrepreneurs overcome funding barriers and scale their businesses by connecting them with climate investment opportunities through mentorship, pitch coaching, investor networks, peer learning, and a global community platform.

IFC also announced the inaugural cohort of 20 member banks joining the Alliance for Green Commercial Banks, an initiative of IFC in partnership with the HKMA as its regional anchor in Asia. The Alliance is a curated, invitation-only membership platform for accelerating green banking and green financing in emerging markets. It helps its member banks to embed climate considerations into their core strategies by providing peer learning, thought leadership, and community building, while facilitating access to specialized advisory support and capital through other key stakeholders in the Alliance ecosystem. Collectively managing more than US$5.6 trillion in assets and serving millions of customers, the first cohort includes banks across Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Lao PDR, the Philippines, Thailand, and Viet Nam.

The World Bank also shared findings from a newly released flagship report, "Reboot Development: The Economics of a Livable Planet". Drawing on new analysis, the report finds that 90 percent of the world lives with either degraded land, unhealthy air, or water stress. In low-income countries alone, eight out of ten people live without all three - healthy air, water, and land. However, the report offers a new lens to these challenges and shows that change is possible and can yield high returns. If well managed, nature can create jobs, drive economic growth and build resilience. Using natural resources more efficiently could reduce pollution by as much as 50 percent. Improving farm-level practices of nitrogen fertilizer use can deliver 25-times greater benefits than their cost, while boosting crop yields. "Pollution markets" not only reduce air pollution, they are also extremely cost effective: each US$1 spent yields about US$26-US$215 in benefits.

Mobilizing Capital for Climate and Development

Asia Pacific captured half the world's energy transition investment last year, surpassing US$1 trillion for the first time, according to BloombergNEF. Still, annual investment in the region's key markets must more than double over the next five years to reach carbon neutrality, and it must rise even more in emerging and developing markets. Speakers from leading financial institutions, corporates, and other key stakeholders explored how blended finance, targeted policy reforms, and innovations in sustainable finance can help bridge this gap, while creating jobs, expanding infrastructure, and boosting resilience to extreme weather events.