“The deal between the IFC and MBA is to advance sustainable finance and green banking practices in Mongolia through capacity development and knowledgesharing,” according to a February 13 statement from Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), the Philippine central bank. Under the agreement, MBA will be strengthened as repositories of knowledge on sustainable finance and green banking in Mongolia and in the region.

Vivek Jamwal, practice head of risk and research at Singapore-based Stradegi Investment Management Consulting, says the MOU can help grow awareness of environment, social and governance (ESG) financing and investment. He believes it will pave the way for more green financing over time, and that "asset owners and asset managers will have a choice to allocate to green financing, or to create green fixed income products".

"The next logical step will be measuring the impact on an ESG scale, and hence will pave the way for ESG ratings to be done on those asset owners and asset managers," remarked Mr. Jamwal tells Asia Asset Management.