2030 Finance | April 13, 2017

World Bank passes $10 billion green bond milestone

ImpactAlpha
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Climate Finance

With a sale last week of two bonds to Swedish insurance company Folksam, the World Bank passed the $10 billion mark for its issues of green bonds [paywall].

The bank, which launched the first green bonds in 2008, is now the world’s third largest green bond issuer after European Investment Bank and German development bank KfW.

The bank’s 130 green bonds (in 18 currencies) have raised $10.05 billion to finance renewable energy installations, energy efficiency projects, waste management and agriculture technologies that meet criteria for low carbon and climate resilient growth.

The green bonds generate low-cost capital because they carry the World Bank’s AAA credit rating.

The two bonds sold to Folksam, for example, have five-year maturities and include a $300 million bond paying 2% annually and a $50 million floating-rate bond.

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Photo credit: Condo.ca