Tim Hofer

44 posts

NAFMII launches pilot program for transition finance bonds

China is pursuing a green and low-carbon transformation of its industries, not an elimination of industries. That means traditional and heavily polluting industries are here to stay, but in a cleaner form. Transition finance – and transition bonds – provide an increasingly important funding channel for these industries, which are ineligible for green finance, to lower their carbon footprint…
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Mainland-Hong Kong Stock Connect officially includes ETFs

The announcement came just days before Hong Kong marked the 25th anniversary of its return to Chinese sovereignty and is being viewed by some as a “gift” by Beijing to Hong Kong, but despite the symbolic timing, the move to include ETFs in the Stock Connect was inevitable and logical. This is just the latest in a spate of activity related to the two-way opening of China’s capital markets over the past few months…
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PBoC issues measures to support cross-border ecommerce settlement in RMB

China has been pushing hard to develop cross-border ecommerce and settlement services will be a key part in determining its success. These changes will be welcomed particularly by online merchants hit by the recent supply chain disruptions, but what these traders really need is a return to normal business operations and an end to the uncertainty caused by Beijing’s zero-Covid policy…
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Banks bullish on GBA prospects

While the development of the GBA has been slowed substantially, first by civil unrest in Hong Kong and then by COVID-19-related restrictions on the movement of people and goods, financial institutions remain optimistic about their prospects in the region. It’s worth remembering that the GBA initiative bears the personal imprimatur of Xi Jinping and that it’s likely to remain a major policy priority for the foreseeable future…
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CSRC denies warning foreign banks on executive pay

  • Tim Hofer
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Our guess is that the CSRC did meet foreign bank executives to brief them on the new guidelines and the executives then interpreted this as the CSRC intervening in internal decisions on pay, fearing they may be targeted to make some kind of contribution to support Common Prosperity. This turn of events illustrates just how jittery foreign companies have become about China’s unpredictable regulatory and business environment…
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