Newly Issued Bond: Standard Chartered USD bonds; IPG: 5.3 - 6.1%

Standard Chartered plans to issue 4- and 11-year senior unsecured USD bonds, offering indicative yields of 5.29% and 6.05%, supported by strong fundamentals.

iFAST Research Team
iFAST Research Team07 Aug 2026 142 Views
Newly Issued Bond: Standard Chartered USD bonds; IPG: 5.3 - 6.1%
  • Standard Chartered Bank plans to issue 4-year and 11-year senior unsecured USD bonds, with reference yield guidance of 5.29% and 6.05% respectively (the guidance rates are the yield on the 4-year US Treasury note plus 105 basis points and the yield on the 11-year US Treasury note plus 145 basis points). Proceeds from the bond issuance will be used for general corporate purposes.
  • The issuer currently has a credit rating of BBB+/A (Standard & Poor's/Fitch) with a stable outlook. These two USD bonds are expected to receive a BBB+/A (Standard & Poor's/Fitch) credit rating.
  • Both new bonds include a call option, allowing the issuer to redeem the 4-year bond in year 3 and the 11-year bond in year 10. If the issuer does not redeem, the bonds will convert to floating-rate bonds, with the coupon rate based on the secured overnight funding rate (SOFR) plus a spread, the amount of which is yet to be determined. Furthermore, coupon payments will be made quarterly.
  • Standard Chartered Bank is a leading international bank with nearly 170 years of history. Headquartered in the UK, it serves customers in more than 120 markets worldwide. Standard Chartered primarily provides personal banking, commercial banking, investment banking, and asset management services. Standard Chartered is currently listed on the London Stock Exchange and the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (stock codes: STAN.LD/2888.HK), with a current market capitalization of approximately HK$501.5 billion.
  • Standard Chartered recorded its best half-year results ever in the first half of 2026, with total revenue rising 6% YoY to US$11.6 billion and pre-tax profit rising 9% to US$4.8 billion, both record highs for a half-year. Net profit rose 10% YoY to US$3.7 billion, earnings per share rose 17% to 151.6 US cents, and return on tangible equity (RoTE) rose 120 basis points to 17.6%, demonstrating robust profitability. Adjusted net interest income for the first half rose 4% year-on-year to US$5.7 billion, reflecting loan growth and an improved balance sheet structure, demonstrating resilience under interest rate pressures. Non-interest income rose 8% year-on-year to US$5.9 billion, or 13% excluding the one-off gain from the Solv India transaction in the same period of 2025. Wealth management revenue surged 38% and global banking revenue rose 19%, continuing the double-digit growth momentum.
  • As of the end of June 2026, Standard Chartered's asset quality remained sound. The ratio of non-performing loans (Phase III credit impairment loans) to total customer loans further decreased to 1.88% from 2.05% at the end of 2025, continuing the decline from the high of 2.62% at the end of September 2023. Credit impairment provisions for the first half of the year totaled US$446 million, equivalent to an annualized loan loss rate of 26 basis points. Of this, US$234 million was additional management provisions related to the Middle East conflict, reflecting more forward-looking prudent arrangements than a deterioration in actual asset quality. Furthermore, Standard Chartered's Core Tier 1 (CET1) ratio was 14.2%, a slight increase of 3 basis points from 14.1% at the end of 2025, exceeding the regulatory minimum requirement of 10.3%. In terms of liquidity, the Liquidity Coverage Ratio (LCR) is 148% (end of 2025: 155%), the Net Stable Funding Ratio (NSFR) has averaged 137% over the past four quarters, and the leverage ratio is 4.7% (regulatory requirement 3.7%), all significantly higher than their respective regulatory minimums.
  • Given Standard Chartered's current stable operating performance, ample capital buffer, and low overall credit risk, the new bonds are worth considering for investors. Investors should note that both bonds include an issuer redemption option. If the issuer does not redeem, the coupon rate will become a floating rate and payable quarterly, with more complex terms involving loss mitigation. Furthermore, the final issue price may not be as high as the indicative interest rate.
Declaration: For specific disclosure, at the time of publication of this report, IFPL (via its connected and associated entities) and the analyst who produced this report hold NIL positions in the abovementioned securities. This research report was prepared with the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) tools. iFAST Financial Pte Ltd does not rely exclusively on AI for content generation; the content of this report – including all investment theses, ratings, price targets and conclusions – has been independently reviewed and verified by the research analyst(s) to ensure accuracy and professional integrity.

All materials and contents found in this site are strictly for general circulation and informational purposes only and should not be considered as an offer, or solicitation, to deal in any of the funds or products found/identified in this site. While iFAST Financial Pte Ltd ("IFPL") has tried to provide accurate and timely information, there may be inadvertent delays, omissions, technical or factual inaccuracies and typographical errors. Any opinion or estimate contained in this report is made on a general basis and neither IFPL nor any of its servants or agents have given any consideration to nor have they or any of them made any investigation of the investment objective, financial situation or particular need of any user or reader, any specific person or group of persons. You should consider carefully if the products you are going to purchase are suitable for your investment objective, investment experience, risk tolerance and other personal circumstances. If you are uncertain about the suitability of the investment product, please seek advice from a financial adviser, before making a decision to purchase the investment product. Past performance is not indicative of future performance. The value of the investment products and the income from them may fall as well as rise. Opinions expressed herein are subject to change without notice. In respect of any matters arising from, or in connection with the said research analyses or research reports, recipients of the report are to contact IFPL at 10 Collyer Quay, #26-01 Ocean Financial Centre Building, Singapore 049315, or by telephone at +65 6557 2853. Where the report contains research analyses or research reports from a foreign research house and if the recipient of such research analyses or research reports is not an accredited investor, expert investor, institutional investor or an ex-accredited investor, IFPL accepts legal responsibility for the contents of such analyses or reports to such persons only to the extent as required by law. Please note that only certain security(ies) herein are available to all investors, while the rest are only available for certain persons to invest in, such as Accredited Investors (as defined in the Securities and Futures Act) or one who invests at least S$200,000 (or its equivalent currency) per transaction. To qualify as an Accredited Investor, one needs to submit a declaration form and certain relevant supporting documents, according to iFAST’s prevailing policies and procedures.

Please read our full disclaimers on the website at ( https://fsm.global/sg/policies/328125/investment-account-terms-&-conditions).

iFAST Financial Pte Ltd (IFPL) (registered address: 10 Collyer Quay #26-01 Ocean Financial Centre Singapore 049315, Telephone: 6557 2000) holds the Financial Advisers Licence issued by the Monetary Authority of Singapore ('MAS') to conduct regulated activities of advising on securities, marketing of collective investment schemes and arranging of any contract of insurance in respect of life policies, other than a contract of reinsurance and the Capital Markets Services Licence issued by the MAS to conduct regulated activities of dealing in securities and providing custodial services for securities. While IFPL has made every effort to ensure the independence of the report's contents, IFPL's nature of business is such that IFPL and its connected and associated entities together with their respective directors, officers and staff may be involved in providing dealing or investment-related services in the abovementioned securities, and have taken or may take positions in the securities mentioned in this report, and may also act as the principal for any buy or sell trades.