SY family-led BDO Unibank Inc. (BDO) received an updated Second Party Opinion (SPO) from Morningstar Sustainalytics affirming that the bank’s Sustainable Finance Framework (SFF) was “credible and impactful.”
Sustainalytics is a company that provides environmental, social, and governance (ESG) risk ratings and scores for more than 13,000 companies across various industries and regions in the world.
“Sustainalytics is confident that BDO is well positioned to issue green, blue, social, gender, orange and sustainability bonds and loans, and other debt financing instruments,” it said.
BDO was said to have adequate measures to identify, manage and mitigate environmental and social risks commonly associated with eligible projects.
“Sustainalytics considers that the eligible projects are expected to contribute to positive environmental and social impacts in the Philippines in relation to ecological sustainability, ocean health, social well-being, community development and women’s empowerment,” the ESG risk rater added.
The expansion of BDO’s SFF intends to include gender financing and 19 additional eligible categories under green, blue, orange, and social financing aligned with international and local bond principles, guidelines and taxonomies, as well as the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.
“The expanded SFF will allow BDO to finance more projects with high economic, environmental and social benefits through its bond issuances, contributing to ecological sustainability, ocean, health, community development and women’s empowerment,” the bank said.
In 2022, BDO set a record for the largest bond issuance for any Philippine financial institution or company for its Asean Sustainability Bond worth P52.7 billion. Another P63.3 billion issuance was made in January 2024.
The most recent Asean Sustainability Bond issuance from BDO was made last July 16, 2024, worth P55.7 billion.
On Tuesday, BDO shares were unchanged at P152.80 apiece.
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