The Standard Chartered Bank has launched its first Social Bond, raising €1 billion to finance sustainable development projects primarily in low-income countries across its emerging market footprint. The eight-year Non-Call seven-year offering aims to channel private sector capital towards critical development needs in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East, regions where the bank states 99 per cent of its existing USD 5.5 billion social asset pool is located.
The issuance, named the ‘Viñals Social Bond’ in honour of outgoing Group Chair José Viñals who retires in May after nine years, will direct funds towards lending to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), with a focus on supporting women-owned businesses, job creation, and access to finance. Proceeds are also earmarked for financing access to essential services such as healthcare and education, alongside investments in affordable basic infrastructure and food security, aligning with activities outlined in the bank’s Sustainability Bond Framework. Standard Chartered highlighted India (57%), Malaysia (10%), Bangladesh (6%), Mainland China (5%), and Nepal (4%) as the top five countries for its current social assets.
The move comes amid estimates that emerging markets require approximately USD 4.2 trillion in annual investment to achieve sustainable development goals and enhance resilience. Standard Chartered positions the bond as a mechanism to help bridge this gap by mobilising capital from major financial centres. Diego De Giorgi, Group Chief Financial Officer at Standard Chartered, commented on the issuance: “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. As a bank that sits at the centre of capital, trade and investment flows, across both developed and developing economies, this issuance highlights how the bank is providing financial solutions to support the enduring growth of our markets.”
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Marisa Drew, Chief Sustainability Officer at Standard Chartered, added: “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. The fact that 99 per cent of our social assets are located in Asia, Africa and the Middle East is a differentiating factor for us as an organisation and enables us to offer clients a dynamic sustainability proposition to jointly drive impact across our footprint.” Daniel Hodge, Group Treasurer, noted the structure’s appeal: “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.”
The bank reported strong investor interest, citing oversubscription for the offering. Salman Ansari, Global Head, Capital Markets at Standard Chartered, stated: “This is the Group’s first Social bond issuance, following three successful Sustainability bonds issued by Standard Chartered PLC. The transaction underlines the bank’s commitment to inclusive growth and development, and is aligned with our brand promise, Here for Good. The oversubscription of this issuance indicates the continued strong global investor demand for our credit and differentiated Sustainability story.”
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Standard Chartered referenced past projects indicative of its social financing activities, including a €22 million social loan for a rural water supply project in Angola impacting 100,000 people, and a €114 million MIGA-backed social financing package for Uzbekistan’s largest bank to support SMEs. It also highlighted its SC Women’s International Network (WIN) programme, aimed at empowering women entrepreneurs, which has expanded to seven markets and is targeting USD 1 billion in lending to women-led SMEs by 2028. The bank’s total Sustainable Finance asset pool stood at USD 23.3 billion as of September 2024, with 78 per cent located in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East.
