The Alliance for Green Commercial Banks (the Alliance), a global initiative of the International Finance Corporation (“IFC”), in partnership in Asia with the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), the Regional Anchor, successfully concluded its inaugural flagship event, the “Excellence in Green Commercial Banking Immersion Lab” (Study Tour), which was held in Hong Kong SAR from March 24–28, 2025.

The programme convened delegations from six Alliance member banks from the Philippines (Bank of the Philippine Islands and Security Bank Corporation), Thailand (Bank of Ayudhya Public Company Limited and TMBThanachart Bank Public Company Limited), and Viet Nam (HDBank and Vietnam Maritime Commercial Joint Stock Bank). The five-day programme, which was supported by Alliance cornerstone banks (Bank of China (Hong Kong), Citi, Crédit Agricole CIB, HSBC, and Standard Chartered in addition to 25 knowledge partners, took participating banks through eight building blocks of IFC’s Excellence in Green Commercial Banking Framework, leveraging teaching sessions, interactive case studies, and field visits to prominent green projects run by the Airport Authority Hong Kong and CLP Power Hong Kong Limited.

Participants gained valuable insights into implementing innovative approaches to integrating green banking strategies into their organisations while aligning financial objectives with environmental goals.

“We were delighted to host some of Asia’s leading financial institutions at the Alliance for Green Commercial Bank’s inaugural Excellence in Green Commercial Banking Immersion Lab,” said Mr Allen Forlemu, Regional Industry Director, Financial Institutions Group, Asia and the Pacific at IFC. “This transformative journey provided our valued member bank participants with a unique opportunity to engage with industry experts, witness innovative green finance projects first-hand, and exchange industry best practices, among other important engagements. By fostering peer-to-peer knowledge exchange, collaboration and hands-on learning, we look forward to working together more to strengthen the Asian financial sector’s ability to drive the green transition.”