China's First National ESG Evaluation Standard Released
ISSUING AUTHORITIES:
State Administration for Market Regulation
Standardization Administration
DATE OF ISSUANCE:
December 31, 2025
EFFECTIVE DATE:
April 1, 2026
Under the guidance of the People's Bank of China, the national standard Framework for Environmental, Social and Governance Evaluation of Bond Issuers (GB/T 46912-2025), drafted under the leadership of China Central Depository & Clearing Co., Ltd., has been officially released and will take effect on April 1, 2026. This is the first national standard named after ESG in China's financial sector.
This document applies to financial institutions, third-party service providers, news media, the general public, and others conducting ESG evaluations on bond issuers (including issuers of corporate credit bonds and financial bonds). It establishes a three-tier system consisting of "evaluation categories-evaluation dimensions-evaluation topics", covering three evaluation categories (environmental, social, and governance), which are further broken down into 11 evaluation dimensions and 33 evaluation topics, with clearly defined core measurement content at each level. At the same time, it specifies four major evaluation principles –science-based, compatibility, feasibility, and dynamism - and standardizes the entire process from determining the evaluation scope, constructing indicators, collecting data, to verifying results, providing a standardized guide for various entities to conduct ESG evaluations.
The standard adheres to four key formulation principles:1) Coordination,ensuring consistency and compatibility with existing policy frameworks; 2) Feasibility,based on the realities of China's market and aligned with the current disclosure practices of issuers; 3) Expandability,maintaining flexibility and adaptability of the framework; and 4) Comprehensiveness, objectively reflecting policy trends, drawing on internationally accepted frameworks, and fully covering the ESG evaluation needs of bond issuers.
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