The Hong Kong financial services sector has said financial technology adoption in the special administrative region is embracing choice, interoperability and practical market utility, demonstrated by the Hong Kong SAR government’s fourth digital green bond offering of around HK$20 billion ($2.6 billion) — the largest global digital bond issuance to date.
The latest bond offering consists of four currency tranches denominated in Hong Kong dollars, renminbi, US dollars and euros, with subscription ratios across four currencies reaching 1.3 to 11.3 times.
The clearing and settlement system of this digital bond batch is the Hong Kong Monetary Authority’s Central Moneymarkets Unit, with HSBC Orion acting as the digital assets platform.
The latest issuance represents the world’s first digital bond integrating tokenized deposits in Hong Kong dollars. This issuance facilitates the connection of HSBC Orion to EnsembleTX, facilitating interbank settlement using tokenized deposit. Investors in both the HKD and RMB tranches can choose to settle using tokenized central bank money alongside traditional settlement rails in the primary issuance process.
“This demonstrates how digital assets, tokenized deposits and tokenized central bank money can work across interoperable infrastructure to improve speed and efficiency, while allowing market participants to continue using established settlement arrangements where appropriate,” said David Liao, Asia and Middle East co-chief executive at HSBC Holdings.
He added that the fourth issuance shows that digital bonds are evolving from an emerging concept into a scalable funding tool for issuers and investors.
Another technical feature of this digital bond issuance is that it facilitates T+1 settlement.
“By enabling T+1 settlement, the transaction demonstrates the potential of next-generation financial infrastructure to enhance market efficiency and support the overall market development,” said David Yim, head of capital markets for Greater China & North Asia at Standard Chartered.
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Yim added the latest digital bond offering marks Hong Kong’s continued evolution from a pioneer in digital bonds to a mature market with greater depth and scale.
The digital bond offering also adopts the International Capital Market Association’s latest Bond Data Taxonomy Version 2.0, promoting greater data consistency, interoperability and end-to-end automation across the bond lifecycle
“Denominated in multiple currencies, these bonds cater to the asset diversification needs of both local and overseas investors, and have incorporated a range of innovative technologies to further advance innovation in the bond market,” Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po said.
Chan said the government will continue to issue tokenized bonds on a regular basis, expand the use-cases for the underlying technologies, and harness financial technology to empower the bond market’s continued development.
The bonds consist of the two-year Hong Kong dollar 5.5-billion tranche with the coupon rate, or annual interest rate, set at 3.8 percent; the RMB 7.5 billion, five-year tranche at 1.65 percent, the USD 200 million, three-year tranche at 5.023 percent, and the EUR 450 million, four-year tranche at 3.734 percent.
“This issuance will further enhance society’s understanding of the integration of sustainable development and fintech, while strengthening Hong Kong’s position as a leading global green and sustainable finance hub,” Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury Christopher Hui Ching-yu said.
Eddie Yue Man-wai — chief executive officer of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority —- said the latest issuance reinforces the government’s commitment to stay ahead in the digital finance space, continue to unlock new synergies across digital infrastructures, and deepen the city’s digital asset ecosystem.
The Hong Kong SAR government has completed four batches of digital green bond issuances since 2023, raising a combined total of approximately HK$36.8 billion.