The ASEAN Capital Markets Forum ("ACMF") has endorsed the ACMF Action Plan 2021-2025 ("Action Plan") during its 34th ACMF Chairs Meeting, as stated in a media release of 15 March 2021. The Action Plan builds on ACMF Action Plan 2016 – 2020, and was developed with feedback from capital market participants and other stakeholders to ensure that the Action Plan is inclusive and relevant, particularly amid the new normal.
The Action Plan sets out three strategic objectives:
- Fostering growth and recovery with sustainability;
- Promoting and sustaining inclusiveness; and
- Strengthening and maintaining orderliness and resilience.
The five key priorities that support the strategic objectives are: (i) driving higher levels of transparency and disclosure; (ii) continuing with regulatory harmonisation; (iii) intensifying capacity building; (iv) amplifying communication and awareness building; and (v) strengthening co-operation and co-ordination.
The ACMF discussed the progress of the six short-to-medium term focus areas identified in the Roadmap for ASEAN Sustainable Capital Markets. Among other things, the ACMF discussed sustainable finance and the development of sustainable finance, ACMF emphasised the importance of capacity building. In this regard:
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The ACMF welcomed continued collaboration with the ASEAN Working Committee – Capital Market Development (WC-CMD) on transition standards, sustainability-linked bond standards and sustainability disclosures.
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The ACMF commended progress made on the ASEAN Sustainable Finance Taxonomy.
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The meeting noted continuing traction of ACMF’s sustainable finance initiatives earlier launched, namely the ASEAN Green Bond Standards, ASEAN Social Bond Standards and ASEAN Sustainability Bond Standards. Since 2017 until the end of 2020, a total of US$8.35 billion bonds labelled under these ASEAN standards have been issued.
The ACMF also discussed other initiatives including the cross-border offering of ASEAN Collective Investment Schemes (ASEAN CIS) and the endorsement of the 2021 ASEAN Corporate Governance Scorecard Assessment Implementation Plan, which is targeted to commence in early Q3 2021.
