As we enter 2025, global sustainable development faces severe challenges, with shifts in policy trends across multiple countries and regions impacting the pace of international cooperation and progress. Against this backdrop, China remains committed to advancing sustainable development through multifaceted efforts.
Recently, Do More with Less, the Future of Sustainable Finance—2025 International Forum for China Impact Investing (hereinafter referred to as the "forum") was jointly hosted by the Chinese Academy of Financial Inclusion (CAFI), Shanghai Advanced Institute of Finance at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, and Yicai Research Institute.
The forum explored topics such as capital markets and the "Five Major Articles" in Finance,
Towards Sustainable Supply Chains：The Role of Big Corporates , and rural Revitalization, aiming to bolster confidence in achieving sustainable development goals.
Many participating speakers expressed strong expectations for the growth of socially responsible investment and provided practical recommendations.
Guangshao Tu, IFCII Co-Chairman, Founding Chair of the Board, Shanghai Advanced
Institute of Finance (SAIF), Shanghai Jiao Tong University, emphasized in his opening remark that building a sustainable financial system is a critical task for financial services in supporting high-quality development. First, a sustainable financial system is a core resource for sustainable development. Sustainable finance and traditional finance are not opposing concepts; rather, sustainable finance represents the evolution and advancement of traditional finance in the era of high-quality development. Second, building a sustainable financial system requires comprehensive reforms across the entire financial sector. This includes redefining financial development goals, expanding financial service areas, improving the financial system, deepening financial functions, enhancing financial value, advancing financial reforms, upgrading financial openness, refining financial governance, optimizing the financial ecosystem, and innovating financial theories. Third, the "Five Major Articles in Finance" serve as key drivers in building China’s sustainable financial system, focusing on critical sectors, important fields, and weak links in high-quality development. Fourth, the Shanghai International Financial Center is a vital platform for developing China’s sustainable financial system, playing a significant role in enhancing innovation, leadership, international competitiveness, and influence in sustainable finance.
Changsheng Tao, Deputy Director General, Shanghai Municipal Financial Services Administration, highlighted Shanghai’s experience in advancing the construction of an international financial center by solidly implementing the "Five Major Articles in Finance." He noted that developing inclusive finance demonstrates the people-centered approach of financial work.
By the end of 2024, the balance of inclusive loans for small and micro enterprises in Shanghai reached 1.29 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 14%. Additionally, green finance is crucial for achieving the "dual carbon" goals. By the end of 2024, the balance of green loans in Shanghai grew by 20.7% year-on-year. In the ESG field, Shanghai has actively explored standard-setting and product innovation. The Shanghai Stock Exchange released the " Guidelines for Sustainability Reporting by Listed Companies" and the "Guide for Preparing Sustainability Reports of Listed Companies" , improving the quality of sustainability disclosures.
In 2024, the "Shanghai Transition Finance Catalog (Trial)" was introduced, promoting the practice of transition finance. The launch of the Green Finance Service Platform has facilitated the alignment of industrial and financial resources. Moving forward, Shanghai will support further allocation of financial resources to green and low-carbon sectors and encourage more innovation in products and services.
To achieve sustainable development for all, financial institutions and tech platforms must actively explore ways to fulfill social responsibilities through their services. Cyril Xinyi Han，Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director of Ant Group，shared insights on how technological innovation can enable sustainable financing. He noted that while indirect financing concentrates risks on the borrowing entity, technology-driven direct financing can effectively disperse risks. For instance, traditional asset securitization often struggles to accurately assess operational efficiency and income potential of underlying assets. However, Real World Asset (RWA) tokenization can digitally represent physical assets - particularly renewable energy assets like solar farms - as tradable tokens. By combining blockchain's trust mechanisms, professional valuation models, and digital currency settlement systems, this innovation significantly improves: Asset transparency，Risk prevention and Financing accessibility. This model simultaneously unlocks large-scale industrial financing opportunities, helps banks transition into transaction banking and expands intermediary services, creating a win-win ecosystem that represents a promising innovation pathway.
From a commercial banking perspective, Jian Zhang, Vice President, Secretary to the Board of Directors, SPDB, emphasized three key relationships in advancing social responsibility and sustainable development: one is external requirements vs. internal drivers. Social responsibility is integral to optimizing credit structures and fostering high-quality growth, serving as a new engine for development. Second, economic value vs. multidimensional social value. These are mutually reinforcing. Inclusive finance helps build a balanced client ecosystem spanning large, medium, small, micro, and individual entities. Third, corporate growth vs. stakeholder interests. A philosophy of shared growth and benefits enhances innovation and competitiveness, fostering a harmonious business environment.
KASIKORNBANK President Pipit Aneaknithi highlighted innovative initiatives to address climate change, including an integrated green finance, technology, and governance system to support high-carbon industries’ transition. KASIKORNBANK also focuses on SMEs’ sustainability, collaborating with national platforms to advance agricultural value chains and environmental governance.
In February 2025, the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) issued the Implementation Opinions on Capital Markets’ Role in Advancing the "Five Priority Articles in Finance", proposing to: Strengthen lifecycle financial services for tech firms, enrich green transition financial products, enhance capital markets’ support for inclusive finance, and
Address diverse pension financing needs.
At the forum, CIaire Liu，Executive Director, Research Institute, Shanghai Stock Exchange（SSE）, cited progress in inclusive finance products, including bond ETFs and low-volatility dividend ETFs. From January to April 2025, SSE facilitated: RMB 119.4 billion in bonds and ABS for private and SMEs (including RMB 5.9 billion for micro/small enterprises); RMB 11.6 billion in rural revitalization bonds;RMB 37.9 billion in supply chain ABS and RMB 57.5 billion in micro-loan ABS. As of April 2025, bond ETF assets reached RMB 214.9 billion, up 43% from end-2024.
Rural sustainable development represents a vast, untapped opportunity for socially responsible investment. Under pressures from resource constraints and digital transformation, building a modern financial system that truly supports China's rural sustainable development has become essential for achieving comprehensive rural revitalization.
Duoguang Bei, GSG China National Partner Chair，President of CAFI, launched his book Understanding Rural Revitalization and Rural Finance (CITIC Press), and this book provides an in-depth financial analysis of rural revitalization, systematically unpacking the essence, significance, and pathways of rural finance. Duoguang Bei noted： “rural areas represent unique, limited-competition markets. Overcoming market failures here remains a global challenge that researchers worldwide continue to study. Current international best practices show growing emphasis on blended finance models - where social impact capital, philanthropic funds (including local governments), and commercial investors collaborate through innovative partnerships."
The forum also featured new initiatives like SPDB’s（Shanghai Pudong Development Bank ） client service brand "SPD Wealth Club" and reports by Yicai Research Institute.:
Growing Together: A Survey of Stewardship in China (investor-side actions for sustainability),
Corporate Social Responsibility in China (enterprise-side practices).
Yudong Yang, Editor-in-Chief of Yicai, stated:
"We aim to do things that are beneficial to the living environment, beneficial to society, and beneficial to every individual, no matter how small. We hope that these research results will assist more investment institutions and Chinese enterprises in progressing steadily and sustainably on the path of high-quality development."
