[Bangkok, 29 May 2025] - The Capacity-building Alliance of Sustainable Investment (CASI), in collaboration with the Bank of Thailand, successfully held a Technical Assistance (TA) Forum on Climate Finance in Bangkok, where the IFC-supported Sustainable Banking and Finance Network (SBFN) and WWF served as knowledge partners.
The Forum brought together over 120 participants, representing financial regulators, central banks, banking associations, development institutions, and sustainable finance networks, from 11 countries and regions including Sri Lanka, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Laos, Mongolia, Fiji, Cambodia, Vietnam, Bangladesh, China, and Thailand. This Forum served as a regional platform for technical exchange, peer learning, and collaboration on advancing sustainable finance policy and climate risk integration across Asia and the Pacific.
The Forum was designed as an effort to support the Bank of Thailand’s update of its sustainable finance taxonomy on 27 May, which expanded its coverage to six sustainable sectors. The Forum focused on actionable areas for policy implementation and market development, including mobilizing climate finance for mitigation and adaptation, building and applying green and transition taxonomies, implementing sustainability disclosure frameworks, conducting physical climate risk assessments, and supporting transition planning for financial institutions and corporates.
Mr. Somchai Lertlarpwasin, Assistant Governor of the Bank of Thailand, emphasized that the central role of financial regulators in driving sustainable finance through improved industry engagement and stronger data access. He noted that aligning regulatory strategies with climate goals will require closer collaboration with market actors and international partners.
Dr. Ma Jun, Chairman of CASI, shared the experience from China on how policy frameworks have been developed to scale up its green finance market. He highlighted the key pillars of China’s green finance framework and the significance of the CGT and M-CGT in enabling cross-border green capital flows. Dr. Ma also stressed the need for capacity building through platforms like the CASI Academy to equip regulators and market participants with technical expertise.
Cheng Lin, Head of CASI secretariat, spoke on the practical journey from taxonomy to sustainability reporting. He shared how regulatory tools help banks quantify and disclose green activities. He also introduced digital solutions that support automated classification and real-time monitoring of sustainable finance data.
Zhang Rong, Global Coordinator of SBFN, highlighted the importance of coherent strategies, disclosure frameworks, and enabling incentives in emerging markets.
Cherri Wang, Senior Climate Risk Expert at Swiss Re, presented their experience on physical climate risk assessments by using geospatial analytical and scenario modeling tools. She emphasized the need for tailored, data-driven climate risk insights to inform resilient investment strategies and regulatory responses.
A panel discussion moderated by Ms. Kannika from Bank of Thailand focused on transition finance and planning in the Asian context. Panelists from CASI&WWF, SBFN, HSBC, and the Bank of Thailand shared practical implementation experiences. They agreed that successful transition planning requires clear taxonomies, robust climate disclosures, strong regulatory guidance, and engagement with SMEs. International collaboration and knowledge-sharing platforms like CASI were seen as essential to building long-term institutional capacity. The roundtable concluded that credible transition strategies must be science-based, context-sensitive, and aligned with national climate goals.
This Forum concluded with a constructive dialogue on next steps. Participants highlighted the ongoing need for technical assistance, improved data infrastructure, and peer learning to further develop the region’s climate finance ecosystem. The Forum provided a valuable opportunity to support the efforts of Bank of Thailand and other central banks and financial regulators in the region in advancing sustainable finance, which also highlighted the CASI’s ongoing role as a capacity-building platform facilitating collaboration in sustainable finance landscape.
Prior to the Forum, CASI also co-hosted the Asia & Pacific Roundtable with SBFN on 28 May. This roundtable gathered regional regulators and experts to share national progress and future priorities on sustainable finance. Participants emphasized the growing importance of taxonomy convergence, effective climate disclosures, and cross-border alignment through instruments such as the Common Ground Taxonomy (CGT) and Multi-jurisdiction Common Ground Taxonomy (MCGT).
