Once one of the world’s worst offenders in terms of industrial pollution, China is changing its ways, not least by becoming a leader in issuing green bonds.

The winners of this year’s RMB survey are already benefiting from a new wave of liberalization across commercial and investment banking activity that will allow the currency to win wallets around the world.

Instead of ignoring its colonial past, Macau is using it as a unique selling point for its renminbi clearing services by targeting Portuguese-speaking markets. But that business hasn’t arrived yet, and it will always struggle to overcome the challenge of the commodity dollar.

It has been a pillar of Asian finance for half a century, but does the Asian Development Bank still have a role to play?

Competitors have been quick to delight in the travails of UBS’s Asian investment bank, notably its decline in the league tables and a revolving door at senior management level. A ban imposed by Hong Kong’s regulator is the latest stick with which to beat the Swiss bank. But UBS’s regional leadership remains bullish – not least thanks to the power of its private bank.

Life for foreign banks in China should be easier now that the China Banking Regulatory Commission (CBRC) has made important changes to the rules governing their activities that should create a more level playing field.

China is bringing its banking and insurance watchdogs under one roof, and experts say the People’s Bank of China (PBoC) is the real winner, with an even broader mandate.

Korea’s big lenders are striking out properly for the first time, buying assets and opening branches across southeast Asia. With their home market saturated, they have little choice but to travel in hope. But will that be enough?

The Chinese Ministry of Finance successfully completed its second offshore renminbi bond auction, but poor investor demand for the offering raises questions about the future of the CNH bond market.