Hong Kong secures US$3.5 billion to fund Northern Metropolis and green projects

Hong Kong has raised HK$27.6 billion (US$3.5 billion) through a green and infrastructure bond sale to finance the Northern Metropolis and low-carbon transformation projects.The offering drew investors from more than 30 markets across Asia, Europe, the Middle East and the Americas, signalling global institutional investors’ confidence in Hong Kong’s development, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority said in a statement on Friday.Orders totalled about HK$239 billion, 8.6 times the offer size.The issuance “raises capital for key infrastructure projects, including the Northern Metropolis, thereby easing early project completion for the good of the economy and people’s livelihood,” said Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po in the statement. “Government green bonds support low-carbon transformation projects and consolidate Hong Kong’s development as a green and sustainable finance hub.”The deal comprised five tranches across four currencies: HK$3 billion 30-year infrastructure bonds priced at 3.95 per cent; two renminbi tranches of 6 billion yuan (US$882 million) each – a 20-year tranche at 2.6 per cent and a 30-year bond at 2.7 per cent; a US$500 million five-year infrastructure tranche at 4.052 per cent; and a 750 million euros (US$882 million) eight-year green tranche at 3.119 per cent.The offering drew investors from more than 30 markets across Asia, Europe, the Middle East and the Americas, according to the Hong Kong Monetary Authority. Photo: Jonathan WongThe bonds were priced after a virtual roadshow on May 6 and are expected to settle on May 14, with listings on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and the London Stock Exchange.