China’s green bond market has overtaken western rivals for the first time this year, as Beijing embraces a form of sustainable finance coming under growing pressure in the US and Europe, reports the Financial Times. In 2025, China issued a record $70.3 billion of bonds either certified or aligned with the Climate Bonds Initiative, an international organisation, according to Financial Times calculations based on LSEG data.
This has helped China’s energy transition outpace other countries as the ESG movement—finance and investment to support the environment, sustainability and good governance—faces a backlash led by Donald Trump’s America.
China has accounted for more than 17% of global green bond issuance this year while the US made up 3%.