Japan’s Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) has closed a 30 billion yen (US$200 million) syndicated external commercial borrowing (ECB) for India’s Housing and Urban Development Corporation (Hudco) from its Singapore branch as a sole mandated lead arranger, bookrunner and social loan coordinator.

The transaction was oversubscribed with a total of nine lenders, and was upsized from its original launch size of 15 billion yen to 30 billion yen after exercising the greenshoe option.

The deal marks Hudoc’s first move into the syndicated loan market and carries a tenor of five years. Aligned with its mission to provide financing for the housing and infrastructure sectors, the inaugural social loan will enable further expansion of its social housing platform to improve the quality of life for the Indian community and enhance infrastructure facilities in urban areas.

SMBC partnered with Hudco to develop their social loan framework, which is in line with the latest international sustainable finance standards established by the Loan Market Association, Asia-Pacific Loan Market Association and Syndications and Trading Association. This initiative is designed to achieve positive social outcomes for the company.

“The deal with Hudco is testament to SMBC’s global credentials as a committed corporate citizen in social value creation,” says Hiroyuki Mesaki, SMBC India’s country head, “and further embodies our group’s mission towards building a sustainable finance portfolio of 50 trillion yen by 2030.”

Rakesh Garg, SMBC’s chief business officer, adds, “This financing sets new benchmarks and paves the way for more Indian companies to tap into the Japanese yen loan markets.”