The cumulative new listings of Socially Responsible Investment bonds exceed 200 trillion won... Ranked 11th in the world

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[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Myunghwan] The cumulative new listing amount of Socially Responsible Investment (SRI) bonds has surpassed 200 trillion KRW for the first time.

According to the Korea Exchange on the 15th, as of June 10, the cumulative new listing amount of SRI bonds is approximately 200.2 trillion KRW. This represents a 154-fold increase compared to 1.3 trillion KRW when SRI bonds were first listed in 2018.

SRI (Socially Responsible Investment) bonds refer to bonds that use raised funds for projects that create positive environmental or social impacts, including green bonds, social bonds, and sustainable bonds.

By type, social bonds accounted for the largest share, nearly 80%, with 159 trillion KRW. Green bonds (19.2 trillion KRW) and sustainable bonds (21.7 trillion KRW) each accounted for about 10% of the total.

The number of companies listing SRI bonds has also increased significantly. As of the 10th, there are 205 listed companies, surpassing 200 and representing a 41-fold increase compared to 2018.

The growth of SRI bonds is attributed to the activation of green finance and support for socially vulnerable groups. Since the government's carbon neutrality declaration in 2020, the role of green finance has been emphasized to achieve net zero (zero carbon emissions), leading to the activation of green bond issuance. It was also noted that the issuance of social bonds and sustainable bonds to support socially vulnerable groups increased after the COVID-19 pandemic declaration.

Among global exchanges where SRI bonds are listed, the Korea Exchange ranks 11th in terms of outstanding balance. In the Asia-Pacific region, it formed the third-largest market following the Singapore Exchange and the Hong Kong Exchange.

Looking at the rankings by type of SRI bonds among global exchanges, Korea Exchange ranked 15th for green bonds, 5th for social bonds, and 10th for sustainable bonds.

An exchange official stated, "Socially responsible investment is expected to expand further to implement global carbon neutrality policies and to resolve social inequality after COVID-19," adding, "The Korea Exchange will continue to make efforts to support the government's sustainable finance policy implementation and to meet the demand for socially responsible investment from market participants."

The exchange plans to complete all preparations this year to list sustainability-linked bonds, which fall under the category of socially responsible investment bonds, on the exchange.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.