Representatives from Prudential Vietnam, Eastpring Investments Vietnam, the British Embassy in Hanoi, BritCham, CBI,VBMA, FiinRatings, Prudential Vietnam’s bank partners and other local banks at the workshop. — Photo courtesy of Prudential

HÀ NỘI — Prudential Vietnam and the Climate Bonds Initiative, supported by the British Chamber of Commerce, organised the “Thematic bonds & Transition investment Workshop” in Hanoi on July 6 to seek feedback on how to support the growth and development of the thematic/labelled bond market in Việt Nam.

The workshop was opened by Phương Tiến Minh, Prudential Vietnam’s CEO, and Mark George, Climate Counsellor of the British Embassy Hanoi. Then, Tom Thornley, First Secretary for Climate and Nature at the British embassy in Hanoi, delivered an overview of his Government’s JETP (Just Energy Transition Partnership) engagement and broad ambitions on climate and nature in Vietnam.

“Back in March this year the UK set out its vision for halving global emissions by 2030 and advancing the net zero, climate resilience and nature positive economic transition globally.

“I think it is key we recognise this vision will not be achieved without partnerships, high-impact, long-term partnerships between countries – such as between the UK and Vietnam – and partnerships between different fields – research, policy, and, of course, finance.

Tom Thornley, First Secretary for Climate and Nature at the British embassy in Hanoi, speaks at the workshop. — Photo courtesy of Prudential

“In many ways, the UK and Vietnam are well aligned on climate. We have both set ambitious targets to reach net zero by 2050, and the UK is eager to partner with like-minded countries globally.

“To do this, the UK has doubled its international climate finance to 11.6 billion pounds of funding between 2021 and 2026.

“Using this finance, the UK is supporting developing countries and emerging economies like Vietnam to respond to the challenge of climate change and realise their net-zero ambitions,” he said

Key stakeholders from the green bond market such as global non-profit, securities company, major local banks, rating agency and Prudential Vietnam’s asset management arm Eastspring took this opportunity to share their knowledge on findings, best practices from markets in ASEAN, as well as learnings, frictions, and barriers to accelerate the growth of the Vietnamese thematic/labelled bond market.

According to Chi Xiang Wong, senior ASEAN analyst from CBI, an international organisation working to mobilise global capital for climate action, referring to the 2022 Sustainable Finance State of the Market in ASEAN and Vietnam, noted an increasing diversification of thematic issuances in the region.

Increasing interest has been seen from various stakeholders, including policymakers, regulators and the financial industry, with supportive efforts and initiatives on sustainable finance to accelerate the green growth of Viet Nam. CBI has seen various initiatives by policymakers – such as the guidance issued by the central bank on environmental risk management in credit extension activities, alongside a handbook commissioned by the securities regulator and prepared by CBI on how to issue thematic bonds in Vietnam.

Ngô Thế Triệu, CEO of Eastspring Investments Vietnam, said global ESG-focused funds attract new money inflows from investors and the growth prospects for ESG-focused funds are promising.

He said financing needs for climate actions in Vietnam would become significant soon, including great contribution from private financial sector resources.

Prudential Vietnam has a key role to play in supporting the Vietnamese Government in achieving its 2050 net-zero target.

A critical aspect of supporting the transition towards a low-carbon economy is the investment of sustainable finance mechanisms in which green bonds are key in the Vietnamese context.

CEO of Prudential Vietnam, Phương Tiến Minh, speaks at the workshop. — Photo courtesy of Prudential

The CEO of Prudential Vietnam, Phương Tiến Minh, said: “As a life insurer and the biggest non-bank asset owner in Vietnam, Prudential has a responsibility to our clients, communities and the environment in Vietnam.

“We consider the environment, society, and governance when making investment choices and uphold our fiduciary and stewardship obligations.

“Financing the transition to a net zero future is a long-term journey that requires large scale and cohesive inputs from key Vietnamese financial sector players. 

“Today’s workshop is another step that Prudential would like to take to reinforce our interest in the sustainable development of the Vietnamese market.”

The workshop participants had a productive session in which ideas and solutions for how to further develop the thematic/labelled bond market were generated.

The thematic/labelled bond market has an important role in mobilising private capital for funding the transition to net-zero in Vietnam.

Prudential Vietnam and its partners are looking forward to working with the Vietnamese Government to sustainably develop the thematic/labelled bond market to help achieve the latter’s 2050 net-zero target.

The JETP agreement was signed in December 2022 between the International Partners Group (IPG) comprising the G7 plus Norway, Denmark and Vietnam, which set out an agreement to work on energy transition.

It includes commitments on both sides. On the IPG side, it is to mobilize finance and expertise to support Vietnam. On the Vietnamese side, it is a commitment to establish a mechanism to be able to utilize the support from the IPG.

Prudential is one of the financial institutions that are specifically working on the JETP agreement along with Standard Chartered, HSBC and others. — VNS