Strengthening support for sustainable businesses
The social and economic challenges that need to be resolved in order to achieve a sustainable society are becoming increasingly diverse and complex. The needs and actions of stakeholders have changed, and expectations and demands for companies to create value for society are on the rise. Against this backdrop, initiatives to improve sustainability are becoming an ever more critical aspect of business strategy.
Mizuho believes that achieving both the resolution of social issues and economic growth will lead to the growth of our customers and, ultimately, to an increase in Mizuho's corporate value. Mizuho is supporting our clients' SX =realize a sustainable society and enhance corporate value.
Mizuho has established materiality in business as well as long-term goals, which serve as KPIs (monitoring indicators), for sustainable finance, and for environmental and climate change response finance, and has formulated a sustainable business strategy. To capture expanding business opportunities, we are strengthening our promotion framework and promoting sustainable business by providing solutions from both financial and non-financial perspectives.
Mizuho's sustainable business strategy (PDF/5,920KB)
Targets and Results of Sustainable finance
Targets (Sustainable finance): Total cumulated amount FY2019-2030 JPY 100 trillion, Environment and climate-related finance JPY 50 trillion
Our definition of sustainable finance and environmental finance
| Category | Description | ||
| Sustainable finance | Social | Financing compliant with the ICMA’s Social Bond Principles, etc, for the purpose of contributing to solve social issues and so on | |
| Sustainability | Financing compliant with LMA and other sustainability-linked loan principles (excluding environment and climate-related finance) | ||
| Project financing for infrastructure | Arrangement of project financing for public transportation, public facilities, etc. | ||
| Proprietary Mizuho products | Mizuho Human Capital Management Impact Finance and others | ||
| Other | |||
| Environment and climate-related finance | Green | Financing compliant with the ICMA’s Green Bond Principles and financing for applications specified in Mizuho's Green Bond Framework for the purpose of responding to environment and climate change etc. | |
| Transition | Financing compliant with the ICMA’s Climate Transition Finance Handbook for the purpose of supporting initiatives to reduce GHG emission in order to realize decarbonized society | ||
| Sustainability | Financing compliant with LMA and other sustainability-linked loan principles that is earmarked for environment and climate-related finance | ||
| Proprietary Mizuho products | Mizuho Eco Finance and others | ||
| Other | Other environment and climate-related financing | ||
Mizuho's strengths and solutions (PDF/4,063KB)
Training and Awareness
Capability building (PDF/4,063KB)
Training sessions on the Equator Principles
Mizuho Bank conducts regular training sessions for its employees on environmental and social risk assessments and Equator Principles requirements involved in large–scale project financing.
Training sessions on the Equator Principles
Main initiatives
Finance
Financing support for renewable energy projects
Sustainability–linked bonds/loans
Supporting the issuance of SDG bonds
SME-tailored sustainable finance
Sustainable finance performance
Sustainability–linked bonds/loans
We are supporting our clients' sustainability strategies by providing sustainability–linked bonds and loans which link preferential terms to the borrower's achievement of sustainability performance targets. Mizuho arranged Japan's first sustainability–linked bond (SLB), and we are also issuing sustainability–linked loans (SLL) both inside and outside Japan.
SME-tailored sustainable finance
Mizuho Bank offers proprietary sustainable finance products for SME clients to support environmental and social actions intended to achieve CO2 emissions reduction targets or improve the working environment, for example. Mizuho's SME-tailored sustainable finance totaled JPY 64.0 million in FY2024.
| Product | Overview |
| SDGs promotion support loans | This product provides support for clients in financing and promoting actions to implement the SDGs*. * Reducing CO2 emissions, raising the percentage of management positions filled by women, reducing disposal losses, etc. |
| Mizuho Positive Impact Finance PRO | As an SME version of Mizuho Positive Impact Finance, this product integrates some of the elements specific to SMEs into its assessment approach, while maintaining the basic ideas of impact assessment for Mizuho Positive Impact Finance. The product aims to comprehensively maximize positive impact*1 and mitigate negative impact*2 for the client covered by the assessment. *1 Increase in the sales volume of products and services contributing to the reduction of environmental load, improvement of the ratio of persons with disabilities in the workforce, etc. *2 Reducing CO2 emissions, raising the percentage of management positions filled by women, reducing disposal losses, etc. |
| Mizuho Sustainability Link Loan PRO | This loan product is offered within a framework in conformity to the internationally recognized sustainability-linked loan principles. The applicable interest rate is reviewed annually depending on the observed level of achievement of targets set by the client in line with its sustainability strategy, including on CO2 emissions reduction. |
Investment and products: ESG investment
In the Asset Management Company, we are engaging in constructive, purposeful dialogue (engagement) with the companies in which we invest. In addition to supporting improvements in these companies' corporate value and supporting sustainable growth for society, we are also pursuing ESG investment, making investment decisions with not only financial information but also ESG factors and other types of non–financial information. For example, we are offering ESG investment products, such as those using our ESG Low Volatility High Dividend Payment Strategy in which we select stocks from an ESG perspective with a focus on dividend yields and low volatility and aim to produce stable returns, our Sustainability Research Strategy in which we consider positive contributions to solving social issues as revenue opportunities and employ selective investment. Our Future Works (ESG) in which we actively select stocks with high ESG evaluations based on the management philosophy and investment process of our Future World series. Going forward, we will continue to practice ESG investment, with the goal of creating a positive cycle for society's sustainable development.
Stewardship responsibilities and ESG investment
Results
Sustainable finance results (trillion JPY)
| Category | Description | FY23 (single year) |
FY24 (single year) |
FY19-24 (Cumulative) |
|||
| Sustainable finance | Social | 0.5 | 0.6 | 2.7 | |||
| Social loans | Arrangement of loans compliant with ICMA’s social bond principles and LMA’s social loan principles | 0.02 | 0.15 | ||||
| Social bonds | Underwriting of bonds compliant with ICMA’s social bond principles | 0.5 | 0.5 | ||||
| Sustainable | 1.7 | 1.4 | 8.8 | ||||
| Sustainability loans and sustainability-linked loans | Arrangement of loans compliant with LMA's sustainability-linked loan principles and Ministry of Environment’s Green Loan and Sustainability-linked Loan Guidelines | 1.4 | 1.3 | ||||
| Sustainability bonds and sustainability-linked bonds | Underwriting of bonds compliant with ICMA's Sustainability Bond Guidelines, Social Bond Principles, Green Bond Principles, and LMA’s Sustainability-linked Bond Principles | 0.4 | 0.2 | ||||
| Project finance for infrastructure | Arrangement of project finance for public transportation, public facilities, and other infrastructure | 0.1 | 0.4 | 1.9 | |||
| Proprietary Mizuho products (excluding Environmental and Climate-related Finance) |
Mizuho Human Capital Management Impact Financing | 0.2 | 0.2 | 1.0 | |||
| SDGs promotion support loans / private placement bond | |||||||
| Sustainable Supply Chain Finance | |||||||
| Mizuho Sustainability Link Loan PRO /Mizuho Sustainability Link Private Placement Bond PRO | |||||||
| Mizuho Positive Impact Finance | |||||||
| Mizuho Positive Impact Finance PRO | |||||||
| Value Co-creation investment | |||||||
| Other | Loans for innovation businesses | 1.4 | 0.2 | 4.7 | |||
| Net increase in ESG / SDGs investment under management | |||||||
| Other | |||||||
| Environmental and Climate-related finance | Green | 2.5*1 | 2.6 | 10.5 | |||
| Green loans | Arrangement of loans compliant with LMA and other green loan principles | 0.9*1 | 1.1 | 8.0 | |||
| Green bonds | Underwriting of bonds compliant with ICMA green bond principles | 1.2 | 0.9 | ||||
| Financing for qualified green projects / businesses | Arrangement of finance targeting use of funds specified in the Mizuho's green bond frameworks | 0.4 | 0.6 | 2.5 | |||
| Transition (outside of coverage of Environmental and climate-related finance until FY2022 results) | 0.3 | 0.2 | 1.2 | ||||
| Transition loans and transition-linked loans | Arrangement of loans compliant with the ICMA's Climate Transition Handbook, the basic policies on climate transition finance, and other principles | 0.2 | 0.1 | ||||
| Transition bonds and transition-linked bonds | Underwriting of bonds compliant with the ICMA's Climate Transition Handbook, the basic policies on climate transition finance, and other principles | 0.1 | 0.1 | ||||
| Sustainable (environmental and climate-related finance) | 0.8 | 0.8 | 1.5 | ||||
| Sustainability loans and sustainability-linked loans | Arrangement of loans compliant with LMA’s sustainability-linked loan principles | 0.6 | 0.5 | ||||
| Sustainability bonds and sustainability-linked bonds | Underwriting of bonds compliant with ICMA’s Sustainability Bond Guidelines, Social Bond Principles, Green Bond Principles, and LMA's Sustainability-linked Bond Principles | 0.1 | 0.3 | ||||
| Proprietary Mizuho products | Mizuho Eco Finance | 1.9 | 2.9 | 8.0 | |||
| Mizuho Sustainable Real Estate NRL | |||||||
| Mizuho Sustainability Link Loan PRO /Mizuho Sustainability Link Private Placement/ Bond PRO | |||||||
| Mizuho Positive Impact Finance | |||||||
| Mizuho Positive Impact Finance PRO | |||||||
| Sustainable Shipping Impact Finance | |||||||
| Mizuho Natural Capital Impact Finance | |||||||
| Transition Investment Facility / Value Co-creation Investment | |||||||
| Other | Other environmental and climate-related finance | 0.3 | 0.1 | ||||
| Subtotal | 5.8*1,2 | 6.6 | 20.5 | ||||
| Total amount of sustainable finance | 9.7*1 | 9.4 | 40.3 | ||||
*1. Revised based on the refinement of aggregated figures.
Achievements in sustainable finance (excerpts)
| Product Category Description | FY 2024 achievements (trillion yen) |
| 1. Green loans, social loans, sustainable loans | 2.85 |
| 2. Sustainability-linked loans | 1.8 |
| 3. SME-tailored sustainable financing | 0.064 |
Research and Consulting
Solving Issues through Collaboration between RCU Functions and Financial Functions
The Research & Consulting Unit (RCU) is responsible for research related to industries, companies, the economy, and financial markets, as well as consulting related to management strategy, sustainability, digital transformation, and similar areas. We have accumulated specialized expertise in sustainability over the years, and by integrating the broad research and consulting knowledge of the entities that make up RCU we are promoting initiatives to bring together all of Mizuho to meet the sustainable business needs of our clients.
Specifically, with Mizuho Financial Group (the holding company) serving as the hub, we are working with relevant departments within and outside RCU, including the Mizuho Bank Industry Research Department and the Consulting Sector of Mizuho Research & Technologies, to respond to the diverse and increasingly complex sustainability business needs of our clients. We are doing this by disseminating our expert knowledge on sustainability, supporting of the development of new ideas and solutions based on such expert knowledge, and assisting in the provision of advice on how to address challenges.
The strength of Mizuho lies in our ability to solve the challenges facing our clients and society through cooperation and collaboration across RCU, which possesses a high level of expertise in both financial and non-financial areas, and banking, trust banking, securities, and other financial functions within our group.
Sustainability consulting
We are supporting our clients' development and implementation of sustainability strategies by applying our in–depth insight into industry, the economy, and society and our high–level expertise in sustainability.
【Case Study ①】We support our clients to review sustainability-centered business portfolios.
- Formulate strategy by adding sustainability as a new decision-making criterion
- Support clients closely across upstream discussions, downstream consulting, and financial business
【Case Study ②】We offers "Carbon Neutral Planning" to support companies in formulating transition plans toward carbon neutrality.
- This service leverages our extensive expertise accumulated over many years in carbon accounting and decarbonization technologies to assist in the development of concrete strategies and plans, including financial aspects.
- In addition, we can propose the establishment of organizational structures to ensure smooth implementation of the formulated strategies and plans, as well as provide hands-on advice and coordination with external partners during the execution phase.
