Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (SMFG) has reported that the net proceeds of its EUR 500 million 3.318% senior notes due 2031, a seven-year green bond issued on 7 October 2024, were fully allocated to eligible green projects as of 31 December 2024, according to allocation and impact disclosures published in March 2025.
The notes were issued under the Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, Inc./Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation Green Finance Framework. In its management assertion, SMFG stated that the net proceeds were fully distributed to eligible green projects or held in overnight or short-term financial instruments in accordance with the framework’s criteria.
WIND AND SOLAR PORTFOLIO
All five nominated projects are in the renewable energy category: three wind projects and two solar projects. The wind assets comprise an 882 MW project in the UK, a 1,286 MW project in the United States and a 1,176 MW project in Australia. The solar assets are a 23 MW project in Japan and a 131 MW project in Chile. The associated loans, signed between December 2022 and March 2023, had a combined balance of EUR 669 million at the end of 2024.
SMFG estimates that the five projects reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 3,540,638 tonnes a year in total, of which 630,084 tonnes is attributable to the portion financed by SMBC Group. The group puts the avoided emissions at 1,260.17 tonnes of CO2 per EUR 1 million of proceeds.
EXTERNAL REVIEW
Sustainalytics, which provided a second-party opinion on the framework in October 2022, conducted an annual review of the 2024 green bond dated 18 March 2025. Based on its limited assurance procedures, Sustainalytics said nothing had come to its attention to indicate that the reviewed projects did not conform, in all material respects, with the use of proceeds criteria and reporting commitments in the framework.
The framework covers five eligible categories: renewable energy, energy efficiency, green buildings, clean transportation, and pollution prevention and control. It excludes fossil fuel-based assets, nuclear and coal-fired power generation, and the mining and tobacco sectors, among others.