TOKYO, May 19, 2021 – ANA HOLDINGS INC. (hereinafter “ANA HD”) announced today that it will publicly offer Sustainability-Linked Bonds further reinforcing the company’s commitment to its environmental, social and governance (ESG) goals. The bonds will be offered this June in the amount of 10 billion yen with a 5 year maturity supported by SMBC Nikko Securities Inc. as a structuring agent.
“The ANA Group has consistently prioritized social good in its actions and through the issuance of the Sustainability-Linked Bonds, will further drive change as we look for ways to adopt multifaceted approaches to meet our ambitious ESG goals,” said Ichiro Fukuzawa, CFO of ANA HD. “We provide a crucial service connecting people and cultures, and it is our hope that the ANA Group will be a leader of change as the world emerges from the COVID-19 crisis.”
Aim and Background of the Bond Offering
In order to achieve sustainable growth and to create both social and economic value, ANA Group has established a mid-term corporate strategy that focuses on ESG management. ANA Group identified the Environment, Human Rights, Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) and Regional Revitalization as its four main pillars and has incorporated them into its corporate strategy.
As a global company, the ANA Group strongly believes in contributing to the achievement of the United Nations SDGs through its business activities. ANA HD offered Green Bonds for environmental initiatives in 2018 and Social Bonds for D&I initiatives in 2019. Our decision to issue the Sustainability-Linked Bonds is a result of our commitment to enhance initiatives in our all four core ESG values through the pursuance of our Sustainability Performance Targets (SPTs).
The ANA Group aspires to be a company that grows together with society by approaching global issues in a unique way. As we face the total impact of COVID-19, we recognize that our ESG values are becoming of greater importance for long-term sustainable development, and we will continue to address environmental and social issues from a mid to long-term perspective.
Selection of SPTs
The ANA Group utilizes external ESG-related indices (including the 4 select SPTs) to gain an objective understanding of our initiatives. As these external parties reflect the most up-to-date global trends and the will of a diverse set of stakeholders, we believe that they are ideal to assess our progress of ESG management.
The following are the SPTs for the issuance of Sustainability-Linked Bonds:
① Company listing on the DJSI World and DJSI Asia Pacific
② Company listing on the FTSE4Good Index
③ Company listing on the MSCI Japan ESG Select Leaders Index
④ Company rating of “A-“ or above on the CDP
If two or more of the above SPTs have not been achieved at the end of fiscal 2022 (March 31, 2023), ANA HD will make a donation to organizations engaged in activities aimed at creating positive impacts on the environment and society, and aim to deliver additional positive impacts as much as possible.
The SPTs selected above are associated with the “Governance” aspect as the ratings results will be reflected in the compensation of our executives. The ANA Group has set targets to be achieved for the themes of “Environment” and “Society”, and aims to achieve them by making “Governance” work.
The framework for the issuance of Sustainability-Linked Bonds has been reviewed and evaluated by Rating and Investment Information, Inc. (R&I), and has been recognized for complying with the “Sustainability-Linked Bond Principles 2020” of the International Capital Market Association (ICMA). In addition, R&I will review the company's disclosures and publish a report on the progress and achievement of the SPTs for the bonds.