China and Canada are taking another step toward deepening their cooperation. On November 5, China's Ministry of Finance announced that it will issue RMB-denominated green sovereign bonds in Canada during the week of November 9, with a scale not exceeding 4 billion RMB. Specific issuance details will be disclosed prior to the event. With this move, Canada will become the fourth overseas market—after Hong Kong, London, and Macao—for the issuance of Chinese RMB sovereign bonds, contributing to the expansion of the investor base for RMB assets in North America.
Why Canada? This is not arbitrary. Bilateral economic and trade relations have visibly improved this year: following Governor Mark Carney’s visit to China in January, both sides signed the China-Canada Economic and Trade Cooperation Roadmap; on November 3, the 29th China-Canada Economic and Trade Joint Committee was upgraded for the first time to ministerial level, with both parties agreeing to extend mutual tariff exemptions through the end of 2028. Canada already possesses RMB infrastructure, having established the first offshore RMB clearing center in North America years ago. In January 2026, China and Canada also renewed a bilateral currency swap agreement worth 200 billion RMB. However, the local market has long lacked sovereign-level RMB assets serving as pricing benchmarks—an absence now being addressed by this bond issuance.
The issuance holds significant implications for the internationalization of the RMB. Previously, offshore RMB sovereign bonds were concentrated in Hong Kong and London. Canada’s emergence as a financial hub in North America makes this issuance a strategic extension of RMB asset reach into the continent’s core markets. Sovereign bonds carry state credit backing, and once listed in Canada, they provide local financial institutions with a reliable reference rate for RMB interest rates. This will enable subsequent RMB bond issuances by Chinese enterprises and local entities in Canada to be priced more accurately based on this benchmark curve.
The scale of 4 billion RMB is modest, especially when compared to the global offshore RMB stock. Its symbolic significance, however, far exceeds its financing function: it represents a “demonstration supply” of sovereign-grade RMB assets in a market previously devoid of such instruments, establishing a credible credit anchor for pricing and trading.
Original article: toutiao.com/article/1881189394102276/
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