Sustainable Finance Awards 2025: Asia-Pacific

Across Asia, banks are deeply embedding adherence to both general ESG principles and the UN Sustainable Development Goals into their core business operations, client relationships, and finance products. Increasingly the banks limit financing of coal operations, weapons manufacturers, manufacturers of environmentally harmful chemicals, and other businesses deemed detrimental to the environment and societies. Instead, through green and sustainability-linked loans, bonds, and other products, the banks are striving to help the countries, organizations, and citizens they serve become environmental stewards. (In fact, Asian corporations often turn to banks for help setting their own environmental policies and procedures.) These activities are particularly important on a continent historically plagued by significant air, water, and soil pollution. Finance products offered range from retail solar mortgages and special loans for electric vehicles to bonds financing the construction of massive wind-power farms and green steel manufacturing plants.

Asia wields significant economic influence on the world stage. But poor infrastructure, political instability, and massive income inequality leave a significant portion of the Asian populace living in poverty. Understanding that sustainable development includes improving the lives of the disadvantaged, banks now offer a host of microloans to historically underrepresented business owners—from female entrepreneurs to small-scale farmers.

Banks like to tout their ESG achievements, and these achievements aren’t just puffery. Banks’ significant reporting on their environmental efforts demonstrates their sustainability leadership, engendering confidence in customers and investors.

DBS’ portfolio of sustainable finance products is vast, ranging from green loans and sustainability-linked loans to social loans and green trade finance. The bank’s green financing portfolio in China alone grew 62% from 2023 to 2024. DBS acted as sole green finance adviser for a 500 million Japanese yen (about $3.3 million) loan for Envision Energy, a wind-turbine manufacturer. DBS was selected by the People’s Bank of China for this role. Envision will use these funds for the construction of a 100 MW wind-power project to serve the national grid in Puyang. The project is expected to generate 270 GW of renewable energy and avoid an estimated 212,600 tons of carbon emissions annually.

In Singapore, DBS acted as financial adviser and mandated lead arranger for a loan to renewable-power generator Rexus Bioenergy. This loan will fund a wood-to-energy plant. The plant will help transform Singapore’s significant wood waste into potassium fertilizer, compost, and other agricultural materials. Transition/sustainability-linked loans include a 350 million Hong Kong dollar (about $45 million) deal with Kwoon Chung Bus, for which DBS acted as mandated lead arranger. Kwoon Chung Bus is Hong Kong’s largest bus company. This loan will help it reduce greenhouse gases through the adoption of more environmentally friendly Euro VI diesel commercial vehicles into its fleet.

CTBC Bank called upon its extensive knowledge of the offshore wind sector and CTBC’s relationships with state-owned banks to achieve financing for Ørsted’s Project Trinity (see the Global Winners section of this article). In fact, CTBC Bank was able to bring three state-owned banks into the deal. Through those relationships and other activities, CTBC Bank helped Ørsted implement Trinity to enhance the existing Greater Changhua Offshore Wind complex. Phases 1 and 2 of this project became operational in 2023, providing power to roughly a million homes. Project Trinity, expected to be completed by 2026, will power an additional million households. This clean energy will aid Taiwan in meeting its goal of achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. CTBC Bank acted as mandated lead arranger, financial adviser, and agent for this project.

The State Council of the People’s Republic of China is the nation’s chief administrative authority. In 1996, it funded the China Central Depository & Clearing Co. as a reorganization of the former National Exchange and Trading System. This company acts as a centralized financial enterprise, providing financial market infrastructure services to banks across China. Services focus on the depository and clearing of government bonds and other securities. The company has played a significant role in the development and standardization of China’s bond market—improving the safety of bond issuances, and easing registration, custody, and settlement processes. In addition to work discussed in the Global Winners section of this article, the company develops indices related to sustainable development and has crafted new standards for ESG evaluation.

Societe Generale (SocGen) has done significant work in the construction of battery energy storage systems (BESSs). These systems enable energy from renewables—including solar and wind power—to be stored and released as needed. BESSs funded by SocGen will store energy associated with a 1.5 GW portfolio of eight solar and wind farms being constructed in Australia by Neoen. Also in Australia, SocGen acted as mandated lead arranger for $400 million Australian dollars (about $255 million) in debt financing for construction of the third phase of the Melbourne Renewable Energy Hub. The hub, comprising three BESS storage projects of 200 MW each, will provide 1.6 GW of energy storage—capable of powering up to 200,000 Australian homes. In Indonesia, SocGen acted as mandated lead arranger for the Project IKN 50 MW solar power plant, along with associated BESS systems.

Maybank is committed to transparency in its ESG activities and in working with clients committed to environmentally sound operations. The bank often discusses its goal of achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. To clarify that goal, it recently published a 70-page white paper called Banking on a Better Tomorrow: Our Commitment to Net Zero. The paper provides a detailed report on the bank’s approach to setting net-zero targets for clients operating in hard-to-abate sectors. It specifically outlines goals for the power, agriculture, aluminum, and steel industries. Additional papers are planned for the commercial real estate and automotive sectors. To ensure that Maybank works with clients committed to sustainability, the bank has developed a proprietary Net Zero carbon calculator, helping Maybank integrate sustainability into its financing decisions. The bank also annually updates its sustainable product framework and transition finance framework.

In addition to Maybank’s work in emerging markets discussed under the Global Winners section of this article, in 2024 the bank launched the HERpower loan program to support women-led small and midsize enterprises (SMEs) whose companies focus on sustainability and social impact. The program provides female entrepreneurs with tailored financing solutions along with invitations to special events and workshops. Fees for traditional banking services are waived for program participants.

In the first half of 2024, the Bank of China underwrote 98.4 billion Chinese yuan (about $13.6 billion) in Chinese green bonds, ranking first among Chinese banks. The scale of overseas green bond underwriting that year was $9.2 billion. Among the green bonds issued in 2024 were $940 million for Belt and Road Initiative countries, allocated to promote sustainable development. Projects funded include green and social efforts such as electric-vehicle battery manufacturing in Hungary, renewable-energy transmission in Slovakia, wind power in Uzbekistan, and sustainable fisheries in Chile. Also of note was the September issuance of a $400 billion green bond in Dubai. Proceeds will fund construction of a hybrid solar/photovoltaic power project. A second project in that country will reduce railways’ CO2 emissions by about 334,000 tons annually.

From January through November of 2024, the Industrial Bank of Korea (IBK) issued a total of 8.6 trillion South Korean won (about $6 billion) in social bonds. The bank reports that these bonds account for more than 22% of its own portfolio and more than 70% of all the social bonds issued by South Korean banks. Among these were an $800 million diversity and inclusion social bond to finance micro, small, and midsize enterprises (MSMEs) owned by women, people of color, and other underrepresented groups. This was the bank’s largest-ever foreign currency bond issuance. This issuance builds on a $600 million five-year, gender-equity-themed social bond issued by IBK in 2023. Proceeds from that bond were channeled toward the financing and/or refinancing of new and existing loans for women-led MSMEs.

The Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) has done extensive work in the field of sustaining communities. In 2024, the bank’s microfinance arm (BPI BanKo) partnered with agricultural fintech Agrilever to launch the AgriNegosyoKo Loan Program, aiming to help farmers in the Philippines strengthen their agricultural practices and improve their livelihoods. The AgriNegosyoKo Loan Program offers customized loans ranging from 50,000 to 300,000 Philippine pesos (about $863 to $5,180). These loans enable farmers to invest in land and equipment. Financial education is also offered. The bank’s new Green Solutions program marks the first collection of eco-friendly housing and automobile loans in the Philippines. The loans finance individuals’ purchase of solar panels as well as electric and hybrid vehicles. LavLoans (short for “lavender,” a color symbolizing support for those suffering from cancer) is a new program offering multipurpose cash loans to cancer patients and their families in need of immediate access to funds. No collateral is needed.

In addition to BPI’s work in sustainable bonds already noted in the Global Winners section of this article, BPI in 2024 served as sole issue manager, joint lead underwriter, and joint bookrunner for Maynilad water and wastewater service company’s 15 billion Philippine peso blue bond for sustainable water and wastewater management activities. It was the nation’s first SEC-registered blue bond.        —LS