Shinhan Card Issues First ESG Overseas Bond This Year

Demand Concentrated at $1.6 Billion, Four Times the Target Amount

[Asia Economy Reporter Ki Ha-young] Shinhan Card announced on the 21st that it has issued a social bond worth USD 400 million (5-year maturity) through a public offering.

Despite the increased volatility in the financial market due to recent US interest rate hikes and tightening policies, Shinhan Card successfully attracted orders exceeding four times the issuance amount. Notably, 96% of the orders in this subscription came from Asia, with the remaining 4% from Europe, involving 105 global institutional investors and totaling USD 1.6 billion in orders.

This bond received an 'A2' rating from the international credit rating agency Moody's, representing one of the highest credit ratings in the industry. Thanks to strong demand, the final spread was lowered by 30 basis points from the initially offered spread, resulting in a final spread of 95 basis points over the 5-year US Treasury yield. The funds raised will be used to support financially vulnerable groups such as low-credit and low-income individuals.

Meanwhile, BNP Paribas, Citi, Credit Agricole CIB, MUFG, and Standard Chartered participated as lead managers for this bond, which was listed on the Singapore Exchange.

A Shinhan Card official stated, "We have once again enhanced our international recognition and expanded our investor base, allowing us to diversify our borrowing sources," adding, "This could have a positive impact on future Korean bond issuances by credit card companies in the global bond market."