Societe Generale SA, a French-based banking group, has secured approval from the Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) to issue New Taiwan dollar-denominated “green” bonds in Taiwan.
The nation’s top financial regulator said Societe Generale is expected to issue NT$15.6 billion (US$521.9 million) in green bonds, making it the first foreign bank to sell NT dollar-denominated green bonds in the nation.
The commission said no details were immediately available about the bond sale’s financial terms.
Approval came after the regulator in April eased rules to allow branches of foreign banks operating in Taiwan to issue NT dollar-denominated green bonds in the nation in a bid to boost investments in local renewable energy source development.
The green bond initiative, promoted by the local capital market, aims to show corporate responsibility in terms of environmental protection, with the proceeds funding environmentally friendly projects.
In the past, foreign banks could only issue foreign currency-denominated green bonds in Taiwan, and the proceeds could be used for eco-friendly investments in the nation or overseas.
All funds raised by Societe Generale’s green bond sale would be invested in related major infrastructure projects in Taiwan — offshore and onshore wind power development, solar energy development and other renewable energy plans, the commission said.
French-based Credit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank and the Export-Import Bank of Korea have sold US$145 million and US$400 million of green bonds in Taiwan respectively.
Since the first four tranches of green bonds were listed on the local over-the-counter (OTC) market on the same day in mid-May last year, a total of 16 tranches worth NT$41.8 billion have been issued by 13 local and foreign enterprises, including the two foreign banks, and traded on the OTC market, the Taipei Exchange said.
The Taipei Exchange, which runs the local OTC market, said it is aware that Societe Generale would soon file an application for the green bond sale on the OTC market.
Other than Societe Generale, the commission said no other foreign banks are seeking to issue NT dollar-denominated green bonds in Taiwan.
The local banks that have sold green bonds on the OTC market include Hua Nan Commercial Bank (華南銀行), E.Sun Commercial Bank (玉山銀行), Taipei Fubon Commercial Bank (台北富邦銀行), Taiwan Business Bank (台灣企銀), Bank SinoPac (永豐銀行), CTBC Bank (中國信託銀行) and KGI Bank (凱基銀行), the Taipei Exchange said.
PATENTS: MediaTek Inc said it would not comment on ongoing legal cases, but does not expect the legal action by Huawei to affect its business operations Smartphone integrated chips designer MediaTek Inc (聯發科) on Friday said that a lawsuit filed by Chinese smartphone brand Huawei Technologies Co (華為) over alleged patent infringements would have little impact on its operations. In an announcement posted on the Taiwan Stock Exchange, MediaTek said that it would not comment on an ongoing legal case. However, the company said that Huawei’s legal action would have little impact on its operations. MediaTek’s statement came after China-based PRIP Research said on Thursday that Huawei filed a lawsuit with a Chinese district court claiming that MediaTek infringed on its patents. The infringement mentioned in the lawsuit likely involved
Taipei is today suspending work, classes and its US$2.4 trillion stock market as Typhoon Gaemi approaches Taiwan with strong winds and heavy rain. The nation is not conducting securities, currency or fixed income trading, statements from its stock and currency exchanges said. Authorities had yesterday issued a warning that the storm could affect people on land and canceled some ship crossings and domestic flights. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) expects its local chipmaking fabs to maintain normal production, the company said in an e-mailed statement. The main chipmaker for Apple Inc and Nvidia Corp said it has activated routine typhoon alert
GROWTH: TSMC increased its projected revenue growth for this year to more than 25 percent, citing stronger-than-expected demand for AI devices and smartphones The Taiwan Institute of Economic Research (TIER, 台灣經濟研究院) yesterday raised its forecast for Taiwan’s GDP growth this year from 3.29 percent to 3.85 percent, as exports and private investment recovered faster than it predicted three months ago. The Taipei-based think tank also expects that Taiwan would see a 8.19 percent increase in exports this year, better than the 7.55 percent it projected in April, as US technology giants spent more money on artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure and development. “There will be more AI servers going forward, but it remains to be seen if the momentum would extend to personal computers, smartphones and
Catastrophic computer outages caused by a software update from one company have once again exposed the dangers of global technological dependence on a handful of players, experts said on Friday. A flawed update sent out by the little-known security firm CrowdStrike Holdings Inc brought airlines, TV stations and myriad other aspects of daily life to a standstill. The outages affected companies or individuals that use CrowdStrike on the Microsoft Inc’s Windows platform. When they applied the update, the incompatible software crashed computers into a frozen state known as the “blue screen of death.” “Today CrowdStrike has become a household name, but not in