The nation of just over 50 million has dethroned China in socially responsible bond sales after the second-largest economy took the top spot four years in a row.
South Korean borrowers have sold $11.9 billion of environmental, social and governance (ESG) bonds year-to-date, according to «Bloomberg» data, outpacing Japan’s $9.5 billion and China’s $9 billion.
The administration in Seoul could further drive growth following annulments of «green New Deal» projects last month focused on reducing carbon emissions and bolstering environmentally friendly business. Large institutional investors such as the National Pension Service, which manages 749 trillion won ($631 billion), have expressed support by boosting ESG allocations.
Driven in part by the pandemic, Asian borrowers have boosted ESG bond issuance by nearly five-fold from $3.6 billion last year to $17.6 billion in 2020. Globally, issuances grew 27 percent to $191.7 billion year-to-date.
