Sustainability leader Ma Jun unpacks China's green finance momentum, energy transition

Oct 23, 2026

Ma Jun, former chief economist of China’s central bank and a leading sustainable-finance architect, explores China’s green finance surge. He discusses the framework behind booming green lending, the global race to align standards, and how geopolitical tensions are reshaping energy strategies. The conversation also examines renewable energy, electric vehicles, scalable green technologies, and the challenge of financing the transition worldwide.

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ADVICE

Build Green Finance Around Four Pillars

Define green activities clearly, require transparent impact reporting, provide temporary incentives, and offer products matched to project risks.
Ma Jun cites insurance that guarantees solar output, helping renewable projects secure bank financing.

INSIGHT

Green-Finance Taxonomies Are Spreading Globally

Countries increasingly replicate China’s green-finance tools, especially taxonomies, incentives, and products beyond loans and bonds.
About 40 countries now have taxonomies, although China remains the largest market by scale.

INSIGHT

Economic Viability Is Driving Green Finance

Geopolitical tensions and defense spending create headwinds, but economics increasingly sustain green investment.
Falling costs make renewables, electric vehicles, and batteries profitable rather than merely symbolic sustainability projects.

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In this episode of the All Things Sustainable podcast, we sit down with Dr. Ma Jun to discuss sustainable finance trends in China and beyond.

Dr. Ma is the former Chief Economist for China's central bank, the People's Bank of China, and was a lead architect of the country's first green finance guidelines and green bond standard. He also served as Co-Chair of the G20 Sustainable Finance Working Group. Today, his roles include President of the Institute of Finance and Sustainability, a Beijing-based think tank; Chairman and President of the Hong Kong Green Finance Association; and Chairman of the Capacity-building Alliance of Sustainable Investment (CASI).

In the interview, Dr. Ma explains why sustainable finance has grown significantly in China and globally, and he highlights examples of how green technology can be scalable. In China, for example, he notes that 60% of car sales are electric vehicles.

"Fundamentally, I think the momentum is there because a lot of green activities have become economically viable," he says. "They are no longer slogans and for cosmetic PR reasons, but they are actually making money."

We also hear how geopolitical conflicts are impacting energy transition strategies. "Renewable energy is [the] ultimate form of energy security," Dr. Ma says. "The energy crisis gives a very strong reason for speeding up the development of the renewable sector, and therefore, finance has to follow."

We conducted this interview on the sidelines of the Building Bridges Summit in Geneva. Listen to our interview with Former US Secretary of State John Kerry at Building Bridges here: John Kerry makes the case for optimism and urgency ahead of COP31 | S&P Global

Further listening: How sustainable finance is evolving as investors rethink security and defense | S&P Global

Further reading: Dual pillars toward carbon peak in China's 15th Five-Year Plan: Energy security and green transition (Subscription required)

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