The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Finance Ministers’ Meeting 2026, to be held in Hong Kong next week, will focus on four areas that represent the city’s distinct strengths, said Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po.
Chan said in his weekly blog post on Sunday that this year marks APEC “China Year”, which centers on the theme "Building an Asia-Pacific Community to Prosper Together," guided by three core priorities: openness, innovation, and cooperation.
Representatives from 21 APEC economies will discuss fiscal policy, digital infrastructure finance, inclusive finance, and exchanges and collaboration among young financial talents, including stabilizing citizens’ livelihoods, raising productivity, supporting small and medium-sized enterprises, and nurturing the next generation.
The Asia-Pacific region is Hong Kong’s most active market, Chan said, highlighting that 87 percent of the city’s total external trade is with APEC member economies.
Chan noted that in introducing long-term capital for the low-carbon transition, the total amount of green and sustainable debt issued in Hong Kong exceeded US$76 billion in 2025, of which about US$38 billion in green and sustainable bonds were arranged and issued in Hong Kong, placing the city as the first in the Asian market for eight consecutive years.
The scale of debt issued demonstrates that Hong Kong is well positioned to bridge project financing needs with investors' demand for transparency, in areas such as green bonds, transition financing, project certification, and professional services, Chan added.
Digital infrastructure also requires enormous funding, Chan said, as developing artificial intelligence drives investment in computing power, data centers, and cloud services.
He said Hong Kong can therefore promote more exchanges and collaboration among APEC members, facilitate cross-regional exchanges among governments, financial institutions, investors, and technology enterprises, and explore public-private partnership financing models.
In addition to addressing the key topics in the meeting, Chan said that beyond fundraising, Hong Kong will also showcase its strengths as an international insurance and risk management hub, providing insurance-linked securities services, captive insurers, specialized marine risk pools, catastrophe bonds, and specialized risk underwriting.
Other than taking part in the meeting, Chan said the attending financial officials, business leaders, and guests can also learn about Hong Kong's development in innovation and technology and urban construction, and experience the city's vitality and charm in culture and arts.
