Message from the Chair of the ASEAN Taxonomy Board (ATB)
The ATB is pleased to introduce the ASEAN Taxonomy for Sustainable Finance (ASEAN
Taxonomy) Version 3 (Version 3), which will be followed by a stakeholder consultation process.
This was preceded by the publication of the ASEAN Taxonomy Version 2 (Version 2) in March
2023, which became effective on 19 February 2024 after incorporating feedback from stakeholder
consultation. The ASEAN Taxonomy is science-based, while being inclusive to cater to the
different development stages of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Member States
(AMS). Version 1 served to provide the overall framework of the ASEAN Taxonomy. The ASEAN
Taxonomy is being developed progressively and will be periodically reviewed to keep abreast with
the global sustainability agenda and technological advancements for continued relevance and
effectiveness. Since the establishment of the ATB under the auspices of the ASEAN Finance
Ministers and Central Bank Governors’ Meeting in March 2021, efforts to grow the sustainable
finance ecosystem have accelerated commendably. Some individual AMS have released their
own taxonomies. This includes the Thailand Taxonomy Phase 1 in June 2023, the Singapore Asia Taxonomy in December 2023, the Indonesia Taxonomy for Sustainable Finance (ITSF) in
February 2024 and the Philippine Sustainable Finance Taxonomy Guidelines (SFTG) in February 2024 Significant effort has been expended to ensure there is alignment of key design elements
including thresholds for relevant Activities between the ASEAN Taxonomy and these national
taxonomies, thus reinforcing the ASEAN Taxonomy’s role as the common language for
sustainable finance in the region and the importance of an inclusive, overarching guide for the
region. At the same time, the transition imperative advocated in the ASEAN Taxonomy has gained
significant traction globally, and all AMS taxonomies released to date have incorporated transition
activities and guidance in their respective documents. Such efforts collectively support an orderly
and just transition in the ASEAN region.
The ATB is cognisant of the need for the ASEAN Taxonomy to facilitate equivalence amongst
AMS taxonomies and to ensure interoperability with other widely used and relevant international
taxonomies. Great care was taken to obtain and incorporate useful input from stakeholders in
2023, which contributed to the development of the ASEAN Taxonomy Version 3. Input from
stakeholders included the need for additional guidance for usability and implementation,
particularly in clarifying definitions and terms. The ASEAN Taxonomy’s multi-tiered approach
comprising the principles-based Foundation Framework (FF) and the Plus Standard (PS),
facilitates inclusivity among AMS, allowing for different levels of adoption depending on individual
AMS’ readiness. The approach to setting the Technical Screening Criteria (TSC) for the PS
addresses both the principles of credibility and inclusiveness, where the ‘Green’ tier is
benchmarked to the 1.5C Paris Agreement target and the ‘Amber’ tiers promote inclusivity. In
the ASEAN Taxonomy Version 2, the completed FF allows any AMS to apply the framework
immediately, to commence their sustainability journey in a consistent and structured manner.
Guidance was also provided on the PS TSC for all four Environmental Objectives (EOs) for the
Energy1 Sector, as well as the Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage (CCUS) enabling sector.
The ASEAN Taxonomy Version 3 now includes the TSC for two additional focus sectors, namely
Transportation & Storage as well as Construction & Real Estate.
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