Praised by the Environmental Finance Sustainable Debt Awards judges as a "credible, precedent-setting transaction", South Korean lender Shinhan Bank raised JPY40 billion ($259 million) from its first transition bond. This bond also represents the first time that a Samurai bond has been labelled as a "transition bond".

A 'Samurai' bond is a yen-denominated bond issued in Japan by a non-Japanese issuer.

The multi-tranche 'Samurai' bond was issued with two-, three-, and five-year maturities. It mobilises capital to support the decarbonisation of Korea's chemical industry, one of the country's largest contributors to greenhouse gas emissions.

The proceeds will be allocated to finance projects related to organic basic chemical manufacture, waste heat recovery for basic chemical manufacture, and carbon capture facilities for hydrogen production.

The bond follows Shinhan's publication of its transition bond framework in October 2025.

Second-party opinion providers assessed the framework as aligned with the Climate Transition Finance Handbook (CTFH) of the International Capital Market Association (ICMA) and 'Basic Guidelines on Climate Transition Finance' from the Japanese government, as well as the ICMA Green Bond Principles (GBP).

The eligibility criteria also refer to taxonomies, including the Korean Green Taxonomy (K-Taxonomy) Guidelines, the EU Taxonomy and Singapore-Asia Taxonomy for Sustainable Finance.

One judge commented: "its science‑aligned eligibility criteria, group net‑zero commitments, annual allocation and impact reporting, and independent external review make it a high‑integrity example of transition finance" and stated that it "offers a practical, replicable template for issuers across Asia and non‑USD markets".