My professional experience as financial research assistant in a green finance institute
In this article, Haiyuan Xu (ESSEC Business School, Master in Strategy & Management of International Business (SMIB), 2021-2022) presents her personal internship experience as assistant financial research analyst in the sector of green finance.
About the company
The International Institute of Green Finance (IIGF) is the first international research institute in China with the goal of promoting the development of green finance. It was established in September 2016 by a donation from Tianfeng Securities Company (Tianfeng Securities issued the first green corporate bond of a private listed company in the market). Its research topics include green finance, climate finance, energy finance and health finance. The IIGF is committed to building a domestic first-class and world-leading green finance think-tank with Chinese characteristics.
Logo of the International Institute of Green Finance (IIGF).
Source: IIGF.
What about my internship？
Job missions
My position was financial research assistant in the green bonds sector.
My work can be summarized as the construction of a financial database about green bonds, and the writing of financial research reports.
Regarding the database construction, the relevant data of green bonds were mainly collected from public channels such as the WIND database (WIND is a financial data and analysis tool service company providing financial data, information, and software service in mainland China). For the database of the institute, I collected information such as the type of green bonds (most of the green bonds were convertible bonds), green bond issuers, use of raised funds, certification and underwriting to update and maintain the existing green bond database. In addition, I participated in the establishment of the standard for the definition of non-labeled green bonds, so that the green investment of general bonds is also included in the database, which makes the database more convincing.
In terms of financial report writing, I participated in on-site research, collected data, and wrote the first draft of the green bond report. Finally, the institute issues the annual green bond market development report, which is of great help to the development of green finance in China.
Requirements for this internship
The job was a team job and required cooperation and communication skills (soft skills). Of course, this job also required me to be financially literate. In addition, I needed to have the ability to collect data, process data and analyze financial markets (hard skills).
What I have learnt from the internship
What impresses me most is the knowledge I have learnt from the business of green finance. I think the development of China’s green finance market is relatively imperfect, and many products can be innovated. According to recent data released by the People’s Bank of China, as of the end of 2021, China’s green loan balance in local and foreign currencies was 15.9 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 33%. But at the same time, driven by the “dual carbon” goal, the scale of China’s green credit products is far from meeting the relevant investment and financing needs, and there is still huge room for growth. At present, the Chinese government is strongly supporting the development of green finance. China is rich in green energy such as wind energy and hydropower. Therefore, based on the above conditions, I believe that China’s green financial market has great potential for development. I look forward to setting up a green public fund company to raise funds for the development of green finance in China.
Earn money in a green way.
Source: IIGF.
Financial Concepts
I explain below some financial concepts that I found useful during my internship at IIGF.
Convertible bonds
A convertible bond is a fixed-income corporate debt security that yields interest payments, but can be converted into a predetermined number of common stock or equity shares. The conversion from the bond to stock can be done at certain times during the bond’s life and is usually at the discretion of the bondholder.
Green bonds
Green bonds are fixed-income financial instruments which are used to fund projects that have positive environmental and/or climate benefits. They follow the Green Bond Principles stated by the International Capital Market Association, and the proceeds from the issuance of which are to be used for the pre-specified types of projects.
Underwriting
Underwriting (UW) services are provided by some large financial institutions, such as banks, insurance companies and investment houses, whereby they guarantee payment in case of damage or financial loss and accept the financial risk for liability arising from such guarantee.
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Useful resources
International Institute of Green Finance (IIGF)
The report published by the IIGF
Green finance for developing countries
About the author
The article was written in March 2022 by Haiyuan_Xu (ESSEC Business School, Master in Strategy & Management of International Business (SMIB), 2021-2022).