Our social
contribution
initiatives
through our
core
business

Our social contribution initiatives through our core business

Contributing to the environment and society through business

ESG stands for Environment, Social, and Governance. Pension funds and other investors around the world are increasingly considering non-financial information, such as ESG, in addition to earnings forecasts and financial information when evaluating companies in order to obtain stable investment returns.

Our efforts related to ESG-themed ETNs

We have listed three ESG-related ETNs called “Smart ESG30 Series ETNs,” which consist of Smart ESG 30 Empowering Women Net Return ETN, Smart ESG 30 Net Return ETN, and Smart ESG 30 Low Carbon Risk Net Return ETN, on the Tokyo Stock Exchange for the first time in Japan. As a publicly traded security, investments can be made in small amounts, and we are striving to expand the ESG investment base, including individual investors.

Furthermore, we began making donations according to the outstanding balance held by the investors of the Smart ESG30 Series ETNs, based on our aspiration not only to list our products on exchanges but also to support initiatives that contribute to solving various ESG-related issues.

In FY2023, we donated approximately 2.43 million yen to three organizations (approximately 810 thousand yen to each organization) that support activities to solve various ESG issues, such as the promotion of a society where women can thrive, promotion of a decarbonized society, and provision of support for the next generation. We will continue to contribute to the creation of a sustainable society by listing our new products on exchanges and implementing various initiatives, so that we can help solve various ESG-related issues.

Note: FY2023 donations were made to the Single Mothers Forum, JUON NETWORK, and Bridge for Smile

Efforts to promote ESG and other types of bonds

Investment based on ESG perspectives is becoming increasingly popular in the bond market, and as one method, there is a growing need for investment in green bonds, social bonds, sustainability bonds, and other types of bonds that limit the use of the funds they raise.
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Green bonds are bonds in which the investment of the funds raised is limited to green projects that contribute to solving environmental problems. Similarly, bonds that are limited to projects that contribute to solving social issues are called social bonds, and bonds that contribute to solving both environmental and social issues are called sustainability bonds, which are collectively called ESG bonds.
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We are aware of the social mission that we must fulfill as a financial institution, and in order to contribute to the creation of a sustainable society, we actively underwrite and support the issuance of ESG bonds and have been involved in a number of deals by domestic and foreign issuers as a lead manager or distributor.
We conducted an ESGs/SDGs Engagement Program called “Dialogue with Issuers and Investors of ESG Bonds.”

Other ESG-related topics

■Supporting startups through value securitization schemes

We have been working as an arranger for a financing method called "Value Securitization" to help start-up companies raise capital. Unlike ordinary corporate loans, this is an innovative financing method designed to achieve large-scale procurement by maximizing the value of intangible assets such as intellectual property in addition to the tangible assets owned by the company.
We will continue to contribute to the creation of a sustainable environment and society through these efforts.