Two days after the report’s publication, a forum took place in downtown S\u00e3o Paulo on accelerating the development of sustainable finance in the Global South. Experts from China, Brazil and other countries discussed how to harmonise the “green taxonomies” that define which projects can qualify for green finance, and how policy pathways can scale up sustainable finance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The event was co-hosted by the Capacity-building Alliance of Sustainable Investment (CASI), a platform for promoting green-finance capacity in developing countries, the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI), a UN-supported network promoting sustainable investing, and iCS, a Brazil-based think-tank focusing on climate issues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This was the second event CASI had hosted in S\u00e3o Paulo since its launch at COP28 in 2023. It has also organised forums in Hong Kong, Johannesburg, Doha, Kuala Lumpur and other cities. The platform intends to “empower 100,000 financial professionals by 2030,” according to its event materials.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On the day of the forum, Ma Jun, chairman of CASI and president of the Beijing-based Institute of Finance and Sustainability, sat down with Dialogue Earth for an interview. He offered insights on the financing challenges facing the Global South and China’s role in promoting the green transition through South-South cooperation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dialogue Earth: What makes China’s experience in sustainable finance so relevant to the Global South right now?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n![\"\"\/]()
<\/div>(Image: Capacity-building Alliance of Sustainable Investment, CASI)<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\nMa Jun:<\/strong> The key is relatability. China\u2019s knowledge comes from a developing economy, making it highly applicable to other Global South countries.<\/p>\n\n\n\nLast year at CASI, we hosted a Malaysian delegation in Huzhou, a city in China\u2019s Zhejiang province with a similar GDP per capita to Malaysia. Huzhou’s banks achieved a green-loan share of 34% of their total lending \u2013 startingly high compared to the 3-4% typical in developing countries. The delegation was incredibly impressed by Huzhou’s local innovations, and also encouraged that if an Asian peer like Huzhou can achieve this, they can too. This shows that experience-sharing among members of the Global South tends to be more convincing in terms of feasibility and transferability. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Debt and expensive capital are increasingly obstructing climate action in the Global South. How can China\u2019s globalising green finance play a role here?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
The Global South faces systemic challenges that drive up capital costs. Credit ratings are often unfavourable, forcing developing countries to pay excessive borrowing costs in international markets. High currency risk is another major factor. Countries borrowing in US dollars, but repaying in local currency, face drastic cost increases due to exchange rate volatility. Finally, many green-sector companies lack long-term operational experience, leading to significant project-execution risk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
These costs and risks make financing extremely difficult, ultimately preventing many otherwise profitable projects from being launched. Under these circumstances, China can offer new, lower-cost financing channels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
China is currently opening up three types of markets to the Global South, namely the panda bond market, the dim sum bond market, and the free trade zone (FTZ) offshore bond market. These tools have gained attention recently primarily because RMB interest rates are consistently and significantly lower than those in the USD market.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The name\u2019s bond\u2026<\/strong><\/span>\n
![\"\"\/](\"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Majun-profile.png\")
<\/div>Ma Jun:<\/strong> The key is relatability. China\u2019s knowledge comes from a developing economy, making it highly applicable to other Global South countries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Last year at CASI, we hosted a Malaysian delegation in Huzhou, a city in China\u2019s Zhejiang province with a similar GDP per capita to Malaysia. Huzhou’s banks achieved a green-loan share of 34% of their total lending \u2013 startingly high compared to the 3-4% typical in developing countries. The delegation was incredibly impressed by Huzhou’s local innovations, and also encouraged that if an Asian peer like Huzhou can achieve this, they can too. This shows that experience-sharing among members of the Global South tends to be more convincing in terms of feasibility and transferability. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The Global South faces systemic challenges that drive up capital costs. Credit ratings are often unfavourable, forcing developing countries to pay excessive borrowing costs in international markets. High currency risk is another major factor. Countries borrowing in US dollars, but repaying in local currency, face drastic cost increases due to exchange rate volatility. Finally, many green-sector companies lack long-term operational experience, leading to significant project-execution risk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n These costs and risks make financing extremely difficult, ultimately preventing many otherwise profitable projects from being launched. Under these circumstances, China can offer new, lower-cost financing channels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n China is currently opening up three types of markets to the Global South, namely the panda bond market, the dim sum bond market, and the free trade zone (FTZ) offshore bond market. These tools have gained attention recently primarily because RMB interest rates are consistently and significantly lower than those in the USD market.<\/p>\n\n\n\nDebt and expensive capital are increasingly obstructing climate action in the Global South. How can China\u2019s globalising green finance play a role here?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"Panel](\"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Dr.-Ma-Jun-chairs-a-session-at-the-CASI-Sao-Paulo-event-V2.jpeg\")
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