BDO Updates Sustainable Finance Framework

The Sustainable Finance Framework (SFF) of BDO Unibank, Inc. (BDO) has just acquired an updated accreditation from Sustainalytics, a leading independent Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) research and ratings provider based in New York.

Photo Insert: BDO has the Philippines' largest financial distribution network, with over 1,500 consolidated operating locations and over 4,400 ATMs nationwide.

According to Sustainalytics, “BDO is adequately positioned to issue sustainability bonds and that the Framework is robust, transparent and in alignment with the four core components of the Green Bond Principles (2021), Social Bond Principles (2021), Green Loan Principles (2021) and the ASEAN Sustainability Bond Standards (2018).”

BDO’s SFF has been expanded to include eligible blue categories like sustainable water and wastewater management, as well as offshore renewable energy.

This expansion is in line with current market requirements and will serve as an addition to green categories such as renewable energy, green buildings, and clean transportation, as well as social categories such as job creation and food security.

This comes after the Bank issued its first $100 million Blue Bond earlier this month, courtesy of funding from the International Finance Corporation (IFC). A Blue Bond is a newer type of sustainability bond that is a financing instrument issued to fund investments in healthy oceans and blue economies.

Ports and Shipping; Ocean-Draining River Rehabilitation; Wastewater and Sanitation; Coastal and Marine Tourism; Aquaculture; Fisheries; and Marine Renewable Energy are all eligible project categories under this new instrument.

The extended SFF strengthens the Bank's support for focused and responsible projects aimed at easing the country's transition to a low-carbon economy and improving socioeconomic development in the Philippines.

BDO has the Philippines' largest financial distribution network, with over 1,500 consolidated operating locations and over 4,400 ATMs nationwide. In terms of total assets, loans, deposits, and trust funds under management, BDO is the country’s largest bank.

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