Key Impact Points:
- EUR1 billion Social Bond will significantly boost finance to SMEs, healthcare, education, infrastructure, and food security.
- 99% of funded projects target high-need areas in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East.
- Addresses urgent USD4.2 trillion annual funding gap in emerging markets.
Groundbreaking Social Finance Initiative
Standard Chartered has launched its first-ever Social Bond, issuing EUR1 billion aimed primarily at financing small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), healthcare, education, essential infrastructure, and food security projects in emerging markets.
Around USD4.2 trillion in annual investment is needed across emerging markets to foster sustainable development and growth, highlighting the critical role of private sector capital in bridging this gap.
Diego De Giorgi, Group CFO at Standard Chartered, emphasized:
“Our first social issuance is an important milestone for the bank and demonstrates Standard Chartered’s unique ability to raise capital in the world’s largest financial centres and deploy it across borders, into those markets where the need for sustainable finance is most acute.”
Strategic Focus on High-Impact Regions
Funds from the Social Bond issuance will primarily support Standard Chartered’s Sustainable Finance asset pool, which includes USD5.5 billion of social assets, 99% of which are located in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. Major recipient countries include India (57%), Malaysia (10%), Bangladesh (6%), China (5%), and Nepal (4%).
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Marisa Drew, Chief Sustainability Officer, highlighted the regional focus:
“This first Social bond issuance underscores our commitment to people, communities and businesses, and provides a unique opportunity to mobilise capital at scale towards inclusive growth and development across our markets.”
Proven Impact and Scalability
Previous social impact initiatives from Standard Chartered include:
- Clean Water in Angola: EUR22 million social loan to fund a water infrastructure project benefiting 100,000 rural residents.
- SME Finance in Uzbekistan: EUR114 million financing package for SMEs in critical economic sectors, structured with the World Bank’s Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA).
- Empowering Women SMEs: Expansion of SC Women’s International Network (WIN) programme, significantly boosting lending and support to women-owned SMEs across Asia and Africa.
Daniel Hodge, Group Treasurer, noted:
“Investors in our Sustainable Finance offering enjoy the benefit of facing a UK-regulated Bank counterparty, while the impact delivered through our products and in this case, through our first Social bond, takes place in many of the most dynamic and high-growth developing markets.”
Salman Ansari, Global Head, Capital Markets, reinforced investor interest:
“The oversubscription of this issuance indicates the continued strong global investor demand for our credit and differentiated Sustainability story.”
Related Article: Standard Chartered Outlines Transition Plan, Targets $1 Billion in Sustainable Finance Income by 2025
