Advancing China's Sustainable Blue Economy 2025

244.2 Major types of blue finance instruments Financial support for the green development of the marine economy exhibits three key characteristics. First, the marine economy is an important focus for financial support, yet due to varying risk preferences associated with different financial instruments, different types of capital are allocated across sectors such as offshore wind power, marine equipment manufacturing, seawater aquaculture, and marine ecological protection, with slight variations in priority areas. Second, in terms of overall scale, financial support still has room for expansion relative to the marine economy’s share of total GDP. However, this may also indicate that financial leverage has been effectively utilized. Third, based on index performance and bond yield levels, the asset quality of financial support for the marine economy generally aligns with the average level across all asset types.4.2.1 Credit Internationally, credit support for the marine economy has evolved into a dual-driven model of government guidance and market operations. Developed countries like Singapore, Japan and Norway use policy banks and maritime funds to provide long-term, low-interest loans, reducing financing risks and supporting marine economic development. Commercial banks complement these efforts by offering market-based loans for sectors such as shipbuilding and fisheries, and integrating marine ecological risks into their credit approval processes, aligning with the SDGs. Multilateral financial institutions like the World Bank and ADB further promote the SBE by financing environmental targets and marine risk insurance. In China, banks have innovated credit products for the marine economy, using sea-use rights, biological assets and carbon sink rights as collateral, and expanding financing to cover the entire marine industry chain. Technological advancements like the Internet of Things (IoT) and blockchain are enhancing asset supervision and mitigating credit risks. The Agricultural Development Bank of China has pioneered the “marine+” credit model, focusing on green development, industrial parks, ports, and tourism, with well-defined repayment sources and strong growth potential. Type of pledgeContent Application cases Right to use uninhabited islandsSupporting island development and ecological restoration by pledging the right to use islands as collateralIn 2013, China Minseng Bank Fuzhou Branch61 handled the registration of an RMB 80 million (~$13 million) mortgage on the right to use the uninhabited Yangyu Island and its surrounding sea area in Fujian for fishery resource restoration and tourism development, creating a precedent for these types of mortgages in the country. Pledge of marine carbon sinksConverting ecological value into financing capacity by pledging the expected yield rights of aquaculture carbon sinks such as algae and shellfishChina Industrial Bank Qingdao Branch62 launched the nation's first marine carbon sink pledge loan with Jiaozhou Bay wetland carbon sinks as a pledge. Weihai Commercial Bank63, in 2022, issued an RMB 8 million (~$1.18 million) loan with the pledge of the expected marine carbon sink revenue rights from the enterprise’s seafood farming as a credit enhancement tool. IoT dynamic supervision of pledgesMonitoring marine ranch assets through IoT technology to solve the challenges of valuing and regulating live assetsIn 2022, Changdao Rural Commercial Bank64 issued a issued a RMB 5 million (~$739,000) working capital “Ocean Ranch IoT Loan” to a seafood production enterprise. The enterprise used the right of use to the sea area it owns as collateral to obtain the loan, and addresses the common issue of lack of asset on the shore as collateral that seafood enterprises face.Table 1: Types and cases of innovative pledges for marine economy credit 4.2.2 Bonds The bond market significantly promotes the sustainable development of the global marine economy, with blue bonds emerging as a new asset class. Since the Seychelles issued the first sovereign blue bond in 2018, the volume and scale of blue bond issuances have grown, supporting sustainable marine value chains, ecosystem management, conservation and coastal infrastructure. Green and sustainability bonds also fund marine-related projects, driving investments in blue carbon reserves, offshore wind power and coastal zone management. The International 63“福建无人岛开发市场化破冰 个人可申请做岛主”, China News, 2013, https:/ /www.chinanews.com.cn/sh/2013/08-19/5178871.shtml . 64“兴业银行落地全国首单湿地碳汇贷”, China Industrial Bank, 2021, https:/ /www.cib.com.cn/cn/aboutCIB/about/news/2021/20210820.html . 65“威海市商业银行股份有限公司 2022年度环境信息披露报告”, Weihai City Commercial Bank, 2023, https:/ /www.whccb.com/publish/whc - cb/20446/37253/37261/2023/11/15/20231115121200774127466/1700021551113.pdf . 66 “海洋牧场物联网贷”, Shandong Government, 2022, http:/ /gzw.shandong.gov.cn/articles/ch04565/202211/36c77e4b-10da-4b22-abc2-14a841b94a3a.shtml .Capital Market Association (ICMA) has developed guidelines for blue finance to enhance transparency and investor confidence. In China, blue bonds primarily finance offshore wind power and seawater desalination projects, though their issuance remains low compared to the marine economy’s GDP contribution. As of 2024, 30 blue bonds worth 30.99 billion (~$4.3 bllion) have been issued, with funds mainly allocated to coastal provinces. Innovations include the diversification of bond types, such as the blue asset-backed security, and projects that combine sustainable marine resource utilization with clean energy development, supporting carbon neutrality and the transition to a clean energy system.63 64 65 66