ADVERTISEMENT
Manila Bulletin devider Business devider Banking & Finance devider IFC sees UnionBank sustainability bond boosting climate finance, MSME lending

IFC sees UnionBank sustainability bond boosting climate finance, MSME lending

Published Jul 17, 2026 02:16 pm

International Finance Corp. (IFC) expects its investment in Aboitiz-led Union Bank of the Philippines’ (UnionBank) inaugural sustainability bond to broaden access to climate finance, expand lending to micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), as well as encourage more Philippine financial institutions to tap sustainable bonds.

“The project is expected to demonstrate the feasibility of raising funding through the issuance of a replicable capital market instrument to promote sustainable financing in a manner that meets international standards, encouraging other financial institutions to replicate,” IFC, the World Bank Group’s (WBG) private-sector arm, said in a disclosure last Thursday, July 16.

This disclosure came a day after UnionBank announced IFC’s $100-million investment in its first sustainability bond last Wednesday, July 15. IFC’s disclosure showed that it may subscribe up to $200 million, or its peso equivalent, in the five-year issuance to support the expansion of UnionBank’s eligible green and social assets.

The issuance will comply with the Zurich-based International Capital Market Association’s (ICMA) sustainability bond principles.
IFC said the five-year sustainability bond will provide UnionBank with medium- to long-term funding, helping the lender better manage asset-liability mismatches while diversifying its funding sources.
According to IFC, its investment is expected to help UnionBank diversify and build a stronger pipeline of green as well as social assets while expanding financing for MSMEs, which continue to face growing funding needs.
Also, IFC said the transaction forms part of its broader strategy to deepen the Philippine market for sustainability-themed bonds.
While the domestic corporate bond market has “grown rapidly” over the past decade, sustainable bond issuance in the country “remains low,” IFC noted.

IFC also noted that it has been working with UnionBank since 2021 to strengthen the bank’s sustainable finance framework (SFF) by identifying additional financing activities that qualify under evolving international green and social finance standards.

As such, the IFC disclosure outlined the environmental and social safeguards accompanying its investment.

According to IFC, bond proceeds will support projects with generally moderate or manageable environmental and social risks while excluding coal-related activities as well as higher-risk projects involving involuntary resettlement, adverse impacts on indigenous peoples (IPs), significant environmental damage, biodiversity loss, cultural heritage risks, major occupational health and safety concerns, as well as retrenchment.

As of end-2025, UnionBank was the country’s eighth-largest publicly listed bank with about $19.7 billion in total assets, operating more than 388 branches nationwide alongside its digital banking platform, IFC noted.

The conglomerate Aboitiz Group owns 49.99 percent of UnionBank, while state-run pension fund Social Security System (SSS) holds an 18.35-percent stake, and insurer Insular Life Assurance Co. Ltd. owns 12.42 percent.

Related Tags

International Finance Corp. (IFC) Union Bank of the Philippines (UnionBank) Aboitiz Group Social Security System (SSS) Insular Life
ADVERTISEMENT
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1561_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ static_articles_1562_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1563_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}

{{ articles_filter_1564_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.mb-article-details { position: relative; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview, .mb-article-details .article-body-summary{ font-size: 17px; line-height: 30px; font-family: "Libre Caslon Text", serif; color: #000; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview iframe , .mb-article-details .article-body-summary iframe{ width: 100%; margin: auto; } .read-more-background { background: linear-gradient(180deg, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0) 13.75%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0.8) 30.79%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000) 72.5%); position: absolute; height: 200px; width: 100%; bottom: 0; display: flex; justify-content: center; align-items: center; padding: 0; } .read-more-background a{ color: #000; } .read-more-btn { padding: 17px 45px; font-family: Inter; font-weight: 700; font-size: 18px; line-height: 16px; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid black; background-color: white; } .hidden { display: none; }
function initializeAllSwipers() { // Get all hidden inputs with cms_article_id document.querySelectorAll('[id^="cms_article_id_"]').forEach(function (input) { const cmsArticleId = input.value; const articleSelector = '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .body_images'; const swiperElement = document.querySelector(articleSelector); if (swiperElement && !swiperElement.classList.contains('swiper-initialized')) { new Swiper(articleSelector, { loop: true, pagination: false, navigation: { nextEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-next', prevEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-prev', }, }); } }); } setTimeout(initializeAllSwipers, 3000); const intersectionObserver = new IntersectionObserver( (entries) => { entries.forEach((entry) => { if (entry.isIntersecting) { const newUrl = entry.target.getAttribute("data-url"); if (newUrl) { history.pushState(null, null, newUrl); let article = entry.target; // Extract metadata const author = article.querySelector('.author-section').textContent.replace('By', '').trim(); const section = article.querySelector('.section-info ').textContent.replace(' ', ' '); const title = article.querySelector('.article-title h1').textContent; // Parse URL for Chartbeat path format const parsedUrl = new URL(newUrl, window.location.origin); const cleanUrl = parsedUrl.host + parsedUrl.pathname; // Update Chartbeat configuration if (typeof window._sf_async_config !== 'undefined') { window._sf_async_config.path = cleanUrl; window._sf_async_config.sections = section; window._sf_async_config.authors = author; } // Track virtual page view with Chartbeat if (typeof pSUPERFLY !== 'undefined' && typeof pSUPERFLY.virtualPage === 'function') { try { pSUPERFLY.virtualPage({ path: cleanUrl, title: title, sections: section, authors: author }); } catch (error) { console.error('ping error', error); } } // Optional: Update document title if (title && title !== document.title) { document.title = title; } } } }); }, { threshold: 0.1 } ); function showArticleBody(button) { const article = button.closest("article"); const summary = article.querySelector(".article-body-summary"); const body = article.querySelector(".article-body-preview"); const readMoreSection = article.querySelector(".read-more-background"); // Hide summary and read-more section summary.style.display = "none"; readMoreSection.style.display = "none"; // Show the full article body body.classList.remove("hidden"); } document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", () => { let loadCount = 0; // Track how many times articles are loaded const offset = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]; // Offset values const currentUrl = window.location.pathname.substring(1); let isLoading = false; // Prevent multiple calls if (!currentUrl) { console.log("Current URL is invalid."); return; } const sentinel = document.getElementById("load-more-sentinel"); if (!sentinel) { console.log("Sentinel element not found."); return; } function isSentinelVisible() { const rect = sentinel.getBoundingClientRect(); return ( rect.top < window.innerHeight && rect.bottom >= 0 ); } function onScroll() { if (isLoading) return; if (isSentinelVisible()) { if (loadCount >= offset.length) { console.log("Maximum load attempts reached."); window.removeEventListener("scroll", onScroll); return; } isLoading = true; const currentOffset = offset[loadCount]; window.loadMoreItems().then(() => { let article = document.querySelector('#widget_1690 > div:nth-last-of-type(2) article'); intersectionObserver.observe(article) loadCount++; }).catch(error => { console.error("Error loading more items:", error); }).finally(() => { isLoading = false; }); } } window.addEventListener("scroll", onScroll); });
Join Our Newsletters

Sign up by email to receive news.

© 2025 Manila Bulletin The Nation's Leading Newspaper. All Rights Reserved.