The Financial Services Agency has issued new guidelines to encourage the issuance of corporate bonds called "social bonds," which are issued by companies for the purpose of covering social contribution project costs, such as measures against infection with the new coronavirus and making facilities barrier-free. It was decided to make.
A "social bond" is a corporate bond issued by a company to raise funds for a business that contributes to society.
It corresponds to the fields of medical care, education, and welfare, and it is said that it includes measures against infection of the new coronavirus and barrier-free facilities, but there is no clear standard in Japan and it is a bottleneck for popularization. It was also pointed out that.
For this reason, the Financial Services Agency has decided to set out to create guidelines that include specific standards, such as what kind of business is suitable for the use of funds.
In February, we will set up a meeting of experts to promote discussions and aim to formulate guidelines by the summer.
Regarding social bonds, it is expected that the number of companies issuing social bonds will increase in the future in order to achieve the "SDGs" = "Sustainable Development Goals" set by the United Nations.
The Financial Services Agency wants to encourage companies to issue new guidelines, which will lead to social contributions by companies and revitalization of the corporate bond market.