Family office plays key role in accelerating Asia's climate transition agenda

At the just-concluded COP28 summit in Dubai, a number of social ventures from the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong introduced their products to a new market.

The companies' participation at the gathering became increasingly significant as the topic of artificial intelligence, or AI, loomed large.

The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Technology Executive Committee and its associates even launched a grand challenge to harness AI-powered solutions for climate action in developing countries.

Patrick Tsang, chairman of Tsangs Group, an innovation-focused global family office that bridges East and West, said, "With the mission to invest in global opportunities that exert a positive influence and impact in Hong Kong and beyond, (Tsangs Group's) presentation at the Hong Kong Climate Day heralded a chain of thought leadership dialogue."

He said a series of potential actions were laid out, with Hong Kong acting as the climate financing hub to join hands with other leading industrialist families in China's Greater Bay Area, or GBA, and raise awareness of the "Green Silk Road".

The GBA comprises nine municipalities in Guangdong province and the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions.

Tsang, co-founder of the Hong Kong Ambassadors Club, an organization for global investors, has been shuttling between Hong Kong, the Middle East and the mainland in recent months.

Tsang said, "One of the high-level guests we received at COP28 was Ma Jun, chairman of the China Society for Finance and Banking's Green Finance Committee.

"We are exploring a long-term engagement in leading the family office sector in Hong Kong and the GBA in response to investment in sustainability and key technologies, accelerating the climate transition agenda in Asia.

"While our family office works closely with top climate and sustainability tech companies, we have also been working closely with key ecosystem stakeholders such as the Hong Kong Environment and Ecology Bureau and the Guangzhou Green Industry Association."

The climate and sustainability technology enterprises include plant-based meat innovation company Green Monday, A-Grade Energy, and Rice Robotics, a service robotics and automation business.