A Snapshot of the Chinese Cleantech Financing Ecosystem

This publication is part of the ACMFN Flagship Report Series and Case Study Series and focusing on key actors within the cleantech financing ecosystem of China. Explore also the Case Studies from India and Indonesia, as well as the Flagship Reports from China, India and Indonesia.

In the light of ever-increasing energy and natural resource consumption, the need for a widespread application of clean technologies is stronger than ever. Cleantech refers to products, services and processes that reduce or eliminate negative ecological impacts, improve the productive and responsible use of natural resources and provide superior performance at lower cost. Micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) can make a significant contribution to green and inclusive growth applying clean technologies. As MSMEs are considered major drivers of economies worldwide, there is great potential to be tapped for investments in clean technologies. Yet, access to financing for clean technology investments and cleantech companies is still a central challenge for MSMEs.

Since 2016, the Asian Cleantech MSME Financing Network (ACMFN), a project co-financed by the European Union, addresses this gap by building and leveraging a cleantech financing ecosystem to spark improved access to financing for Asian cleantech enterprises and promote sustainable consumption and production (SCP) patterns in Asia. Amongst other project activities, adelphi and its partners provided capacity building for about 400 MSMEs and around 200 financial institutions to enhance capacities and knowledge about the benefits of clean technologies for SCP. In the final year of the project, it is time to take stock. To that end adelphi, supported by the national focal partners China Electronic Energy-Saving Technology Association (CEESTA), the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), and Indonesia’s Perkumpulan Untuk Peningkatan Usaha Kecil (PUPUK), prepared the ACMFN Flagship Report Series.

The ACMFN Flagship Report Series provides an insight into the current cleantech financing state in the project countries China, India and Indonesia, identifies cleantech financing challenges and opportunities and showcases country-specific successes of the ACMFN project. The insights are useful for all stakeholders working on harnessing the power of financial markets to deliver environmental and societal goals, in particular project donors and financial institutions in China, India and Indonesia looking to understand the contours of a fast-growing cleantech financing ecosystem. 

The ACMFN Flagship Report Series is accompanied by a Case Study Series that provides in-depth insights into selected organisations, including interviews with key project stakeholders and experts from all levels of the ecosystems. Interviewees range from cleantech enterprises participating in ACMFN, intermediaries such as incubators and accelerators and financial institutions including banks, fintechs and venture capital funds amongst others.

The ACMFN Flagship Report Series proves: The groundwork for a strong cleantech financing ecosystem in China, India and Indonesia is laid. Now, it is the time for all stakeholders to jointly continue these efforts beyond the ACMFN project, overcome remaining challenges and take cleantech financing for MSMEs to the next level.