Press Releases

• Pentagreen Capital will focus on catalysing financing for sustainable infrastructure projects, with an initial focus on Southeast Asia
• Company aims to address the funding gap for marginally bankable and innovative sustainable infrastructure through blended finance solutions and technical assistance, with support from its strategic partners
• Starts with US$150m of capital; aims to make US$1bn of loans within the next five years
• Marat Zapparov appointed Chief Executive Officer; Board of Directors announced.

Singapore, 30 August 2022 – Pentagreen Capital (“Pentagreen”), a sustainable infrastructure debt financing partnership first announced by HSBC Holdings plc (“HSBC”) and Temasek in September 2021, was officially launched today.

Pentagreen is committed to accelerating the development of sustainable infrastructure in Asia by removing the barriers that can prevent marginally bankable projects from accessing capital. It will seek to achieve this through a combination of technical assistance and blended finance to catalyse other sources of capital, with support from its strategic partners.

Geographically, Pentagreen will initially target opportunities in Southeast Asia. The company’s primary focus will be on clean transport, renewable energy and energy storage, and water and waste management. Transactions in areas such as climate adaptation, agriculture and land use, and technology-led solutions as well as other geographies could be considered in the future.

Pentagreen’s strategic partners include the Asian Development Bank, which provides origination and technical support through its presence in countries throughout the region, and Singapore’s Clifford Capital Holdings, which has a strong focus on sustainable long-term financing solutions and is uniquely positioned to provide project finance expertise and operational support.

CEO appointment

Marat Zapparov is named Chief Executive Officer of Pentagreen Capital. Mr Zapparov brings close to two decades of experience to the company, including over 15 years in infrastructure, energy and real assets financing, during which time he worked with the International Finance Corporation, Clifford Capital and HSBC. Mr Zapparov will lead an independent team of seasoned business professionals with deep experience and expertise across various industries and geographies.

“I am excited to lead a company formed by two world-class institutions that are committed to the goals of the Paris Agreement and to developing the infrastructure ecosystem in Asia,” said Mr Zapparov. “Pentagreen is ideally positioned to be an alternative provider of debt capital to accelerate the development of sustainable infrastructure in Asia. We aim to fill the gap between traditional financing options from banks and development financiers and catalyse the flow of capital to innovative projects by bringing flexible debt financing solutions to the table.”

With a combined US$150 million of equity committed by the two founding partners, Pentagreen aims to deploy blended finance at scale over time. The platform aims to make over US$1 billion of loans within five years.

Board formation

Pentagreen will operate independently from HSBC and Temasek, and the two founding shareholders will be represented on Pentagreen’s board.

Pentagreen is also pleased to announce the formation of its Board of Directors, chaired by Kai Nargolwala, who is also the Board Chairman of Singapore Pools (Private) Limited and 65 Equity Partners. He will be joined on the Board by Marat Zapparov, CEO of Pentagreen; Stuart Lea, Head of Global Banking, South Asia and Global Head of Real Assets Finance, HSBC; Kelvin Tan, Head of Sustainable Finance & Investments, ASEAN, HSBC; and Connie Chan, Managing Director, Investment, Financial Services, Temasek.

Commenting on today’s announcement, Stuart Lea, Head of Global Banking South Asia and Global Head of Real Assets Finance at HSBC, said: “In Asia, many infrastructure projects face varying degrees of barriers to bankability. Pentagreen’s goal is to help remove those barriers and unlock other sources of capital. Market development for infrastructure financing requires long-term commitment and patient capital, which HSBC is proud to provide alongside our partners at Temasek.”

Connie Chan, Managing Director, Investment, Financial Services at Temasek, added, “As a long-term investor, we are committed to catalysing sustainable solutions that will contribute to the transition to net zero. We believe that we are in a critical decade to reverse the effects of climate change, and partnerships such as this demonstrate Temasek’s unwavering commitment to playing our part for a more sustainable world where every generation can prosper.”

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Media Contacts

About Pentagreen Capital

Pentagreen Capital is a debt financing company dedicated to catalysing sustainable infrastructure projects, with an initial focus on Southeast Asia. Based in Singapore, it seeks to remove barriers that prevent marginally bankable sustainable infrastructure projects from accessing capital, through a combination of technical assistance and blended finance at scale. Pentagreen will target opportunities in the renewable energy and storage, water and waste treatment, and sustainable transportation sectors, as it helps to build resilience to offset the global impact of climate change. For more information, please visit www.pentagreen.com.

About HSBC Holdings plc

HSBC Holdings plc, the parent company of HSBC, is headquartered in London. HSBC serves customers worldwide from offices in 64 countries and territories in its geographical regions: Europe, Asia, North America, Latin America, and Middle East and North Africa. With assets of US$2,985bn at 30 June 2022, HSBC is one of the world’s largest banking and financial services organisations. Please visit www.hsbc.com for more information.

About Temasek

Temasek is a global investment company with a net portfolio value of S$403bn (US$297b, €268b, £227b, RMB1.89t) as at 31 March 2022. Headquartered in Singapore, it has 12 offices in 8 countries around the world. The Temasek Charter defines its three roles as an Investor, Institution and Steward, and shapes its ethos to do well, do right and do good. Sustainability is at the core of all that Temasek does. It is committed to catalysing solutions to global challenges and activating capital – financial, human, social and natural – to bring about a better and more inclusive world for all. Please visit www.temasek.com.sg for more information.

About Asian Development Bank

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is committed to achieving a prosperous, inclusive, resilient and sustainable Asia and the Pacific, while sustaining its effort to eradicate extreme poverty. Established in 1966, it is owned by 68 members – 49 from the region. For more information, please visit www.adb.org.

About Clifford Capital Holdings

Clifford Capital Holdings is a specialist financing and distribution platform for real assets globally across the debt capital structure, headquartered in Singapore. It provides innovative and sustainable financing solutions to complement mainstream markets across the entire debt capital structure. The Group aims to build a globally competitive alternative financing platform closely aligned to Singapore’s economic growth initiatives in the infrastructure, maritime and other real assets sectors, and works in close collaboration with Singapore government agencies such as the Monetary Authority of Singapore, Economic Development Board, Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore and Enterprise Singapore. For more information, please visit www.cliffordcapitalholdings.sg.