By the end of 2025, the combined outstanding balance of green loans from six major state-owned banks exceeded 25 trillion yuan, with each recording a year-on-year growth rate of over 10%. Many joint-stock commercial banks also maintained rapid expansion in their green credit portfolios, with several institutions posting growth rates exceeding 20%. Recent annual performance reports from listed banks reveal that over the past year, the scale of green credit within the commercial banking sector has continued to expand, signaling a substantial increase in financial support directed towards green initiatives. Green development is recognized as a fundamental component of high-quality growth. As the primary contributors to green investment and financing, commercial banks are increasingly becoming pivotal forces in advancing the high-quality development of green finance. Under the guidance of financial regulatory authorities, China's banking industry has consistently amplified its supply of green financial products, diversified its financial toolkit, and enhanced service quality and efficiency. These efforts are actively supporting key industries and sectors in energy conservation, pollution reduction, carbon emission mitigation, ecological enhancement, and disaster prevention, thereby facilitating the establishment of a clean, low-carbon energy system and the promotion of green technologies, and fully supporting the comprehensive green transformation of the economy and society.
Capital is accelerating its flow into green sectors. In January 2025, the National Financial Regulatory Administration and the People's Bank of China jointly issued the "Implementation Plan for High-Quality Development of Green Finance in the Banking and Insurance Industries," which set clear objectives for green finance development. The plan outlined targeted directions for green finance efforts, explicitly stating that over the next five years, "the professional service capabilities of banking and insurance institutions in green finance will be significantly enhanced" and "the proportion of green finance business within the total business scale of these institutions will be noticeably increased." In practice, as the mainstay of serving the real economy, commercial banks have been steadily increasing their focus on green finance. The latest annual reports indicate a clear acceleration of capital towards green areas. Green credit has maintained high-speed growth. In terms of outstanding loan balances, the combined green loans of the six major state-owned banks surpassed 25 trillion yuan. Among them, the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, China Construction Bank, the Agricultural Bank of China, and the Bank of China reported green loan balances of 6.70 trillion yuan, 6.00 trillion yuan, 5.93 trillion yuan, and 4.96 trillion yuan, respectively. Despite a high base, the growth rate of green credit at these major state-owned banks remained substantial. In 2025, the Bank of China saw its green loans increase by 27.83% year-on-year, while China Construction Bank, the Agricultural Bank of China, the Postal Savings Bank of China, the Bank of Communications, and the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China recorded growth rates of 20.54%, 18.70%, 17.15%, 14.16%, and 11.67%, respectively. Joint-stock banks, while having a relatively smaller absolute scale of green loan balances, exhibited more rapid growth. For instance, CBHB experienced a year-on-year increase of 36.77%, Huaxia Bank grew by 30.99%, and China CITIC Bank, Shanghai Pudong Development Bank, and China Minsheng Bank all maintained high growth rates exceeding 20%. Industrial Bank's green loan balance increased by 19.05% compared to the end of the previous year, reaching 1.11 trillion yuan, thereby consolidating its leading position in the green finance sector. The rapid expansion of green lending within the banking industry has provided ample capital support for the development of green industries and the green transformation of traditional sectors. Concurrently, the issuance scale of green bonds continued to expand, offering more diversified funding options for industries. Data shows that in 2025, the issuance scale of China's domestic green bond market surpassed 1.07 trillion yuan for the first time, with 645 new bonds issued. Commercial banks have actively participated not only as major underwriters and investors but have also proactively issued green financial bonds in domestic and international markets to provide medium- and long-term funding for green industries.
The rapid development of green finance in the banking sector is attributed to both policy guidance and continuous institutional improvements, as well as the intrinsic need for commercial banks to adapt their own growth models amidst the broader economic shift towards green and low-carbon practices. In recent years, the banking industry has been actively pivoting towards sectors like technology and green finance to seek new growth drivers. Fang Heying, Chairman of China CITIC Bank, stated that in 2025, the bank integrated environmental responsibility into its development strategy, effectively steering its growth path towards sustainability. It continuously enriched its supply of green financial products, innovatively launching specialized offerings such as carbon asset-linked bonds and biodiversity usufruct pledge financing, thereby enhancing the quality and efficiency of its green finance operations. Industrial Bank has positioned "Green Bank" as one of its four key focus areas, with sustainability being a core strategic direction. The bank's annual report indicated a commitment to strengthening carbon finance innovation and consolidating its leading advantage in green finance. According to Huaxia Bank's 2025 annual report data, green finance has emerged as another significant growth highlight alongside technology, with its green finance business growing by 31.42% compared to the end of the previous year. In 2025, Huaxia Bank also initiated a "Lighthouse Action" to reinforce conceptual guidance, improve mechanism development, direct the entire bank to intensify its green finance efforts, and continuously build distinctive characteristics, thereby supporting the achievement of carbon peak and carbon neutrality goals. The outline for the 15th Five-Year Plan places "building a modern industrial system" at the forefront of strategic tasks. Serving a modern industrial system requires strategic planning centered on the intelligent, green, and integrated development of industries. Several banks have expressed their intention to seize this opportunity to update their development philosophies and upgrade their operational models. Wang Zhiheng, President of the Agricultural Bank of China, stated during an earnings conference that the bank would focus on key areas such as green upgrades of infrastructure, green development of industries, and the green and low-carbon transformation of energy, continuing to increase the allocation of green credit and raise the proportion of green loans. As China's economic and social development accelerates into a phase of high-quality growth characterized by green and low-carbon practices, green finance represents not just a responsibility but also a significant opportunity for the banking industry. Industry experts suggest that in the future, the banking sector will continue to deepen innovation in green finance, expanding from traditional green credit towards transition finance, ESG-linked loans, carbon finance, and other directions, thereby serving the green transformation of the real economy in a more precise and efficient manner. This process not only aids in achieving the national carbon goals but also cultivates new growth momentum for the banks themselves. From financing industries like clean energy and green buildings to providing personal carbon account services that guide green consumption; from innovative products such as carbon emission quota pledge loans to comprehensive service systems covering "loans, investments, bonds, equities, leases, and guarantees"—driven by both policy guidance and market demand, China's banking industry is steadfastly advancing towards sustainability, channeling a continuous flow of financial resources to support the economy and society's journey towards a greener and more sustainable future.
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