Singapore’s central bank announced on Monday that it has raised US$510 million (RM2.15 billion) for a fund. The fund will use this money to support green and sustainable infrastructure projects in Southeast and South Asia.
The capital will be deployed into green and sustainable infrastructure opportunities in Southeast and South Asia across a strong pipeline of transactions, MAS said in a statement.
MAS (Singapore’s central bank) is part of a group of investors that includes the Australian Government (through Export Finance Australia), International Finance Corporation, Dutch Entrepreneurial Development Bank (FMO), HSBC, Temasek, British International Investment, Bank of the Philippine Islands, and Allied Climate Partners. The European Commission is also supporting the fund under its Global Gateway program.
Pentagreen Capital, a platform for sustainable infrastructure financing set up by HSBC and Temasek, manages the Green Investments Partnership (GIP) fund.
GIP will invest in areas like renewable energy, energy storage, electric vehicle infrastructure, sustainable transport, water and waste management, and other projects important for Southeast and South Asia’s energy transition.
FAST-P, launched by MAS in 2023, brings together public, private, and charitable funds to help finance green projects in Asia. GIP is the first fund under FAST-P to reach its initial funding goal, with money coming from governments, development banks, philanthropies, private investors, banks, and other financial institutions.
The fund will provide debt financing (loans) for climate-friendly infrastructure projects in Southeast and South Asia that are somewhat risky and may not usually get funding.
FAST-P and GIP aim to solve the region’s climate finance gap by using creative funding structures to attract more investors. By reducing risks for international investors, they hope to unlock money for innovative projects that usually struggle to get financing, especially during the development and construction stages.
“The first close of the Green Investments Partnership is an important milestone for FAST-P,
“Pentagreen has brought together a diverse group of partners, which are participating across the different commercial and concessional tranches of the capital structure to de-risk and finance marginally bankable green infrastructure projects in the region,” said Gillian Tan, Assistant Managing Director (Development & International) and Chief Sustainability Officer of MAS.
“MAS welcomes participation by a broader community of partners in FAST-P to mobilize and scale blended finance for Asia’s transition,” she added.
Meanwhile, Munib Madni, Chief Executive Officer of FAST-P Office, said the FAST-P Office looks forward to continuing the work with Pentagreen, its partners in other pillars, and the broader ecosystem of commercial and concessional investors, to promote blended finance solutions for sustainable infrastructure in the region.
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