World Bank prices the first Australian dollar green bond, for A$300 million
Lead managers: RBC Capital Markets, Westpac Institutional Bank

“If investors are offered a product which meets all their normal investment criteria and also achieves sustainability goals, there can be a lot of interest. [But] there is no single understanding of ‘green’, and in this context it is important for investors to understand how any product fits with what their own stakeholders want to achieve."
Heike Reichelt Head of Investor Relations and New Products World Bank

National Australia Bank prints A$300 million in Australia’s first domestic green bond
Lead manager: National Australia Bank

“The domestic investor base has evolved since we started looking at a transaction – I don’t think we could have done a deal as large as this a year ago, and I think in a year’s time the market will have grown further. Pricing was in line with our senior curve – this was a requirement for us, and we feel it was definitely achieved.”
Eva Zileli Head of Group Funding National Australia Bank

Poland is the first sovereign green-bond issuer, with a €750 million transaction.

FlexiGroup includes A$50 million green tranche in a new ABS deal – Australia’s first green securitisation
Arranger: National Australia Bank
Lead managers: Commonwealth Bank of Australia, National Australia Bank

“Market dynamics drove the pricing outcome on FlexiGroup’s green note. But we are hopeful that, over time and as the depth and issuance volume of green bonds including green ABS grows, there is price delineation between green and nongreen tranches.”
Lionel Koe Director, Securitisation National Australia Bank

Australia’s first social bond prices: a A$500 million transaction from National Australia Bank
Lead Manager: National Australia Bank

“Through the process we felt it was vital to be able to articulate the purpose of the bond and how it would deliver on this purpose. The use of third-party opinion really added to the strength of this message, which also allowed investors to have certainty and comfort in advance. Most of all, we couldn’t risk an unsuccessful transaction or one that didn’t pass the reputational or credibility tests.”
David Jenkins Director, Capital Financing National Australia Bank

Investa Office Fund prices Australia’s first corporate green bond, a A$150 million deal
Lead manager: ANZ

“Commercial property tends to be built to at least five-star green levels in the current environment, so the use of green bonds as a financing mechanism in this sector is a logical development.”
Katharine Tapley Head of Sustainable Finance ANZ

More label diversity as Australian Catholic University prices A$200 million in Australia’s first sustainability bond
Lead Managers: National Australia Bank, UBS

“We initially considered bringing a green bond but following NAB’s social-equality gender bond we recognised that our philosophies encompassed the ideologies of both social and green bonds. When the new Sustainability Bond Guidelines were released in June, we found a close alignment with ACU’s mission of social inclusion, and research and development, and our desire to build sustainable buildings.”
Scott Jenkins Chief Financial Officer Australian Catholic University

International Finance Corporation brings the green bond to New Zealand with NZ$125 million deal
Arranger: BNZ
Lead Managers: ANZ, BNZ

“We were very happy with the fact that domestic banks and fund managers bought a large proportion of the transaction. It is only because the bond is green that some of these accounts were comfortable to go to 10 years.”
Flora Chao Senior Funding Officer International Finance Corporation

The inaugural KangaNews Sustainable Debt Summit takes place in Sydney
Headline sponsors: ANZ, RBC Capital Markets, TD Securities, Westpac Institutional Bank

“The minds of bond investors are beginning to tilt toward those of equity investors, in that they are starting to think about where a company may be in 15 years – even if they only hold a five-year bond.”
Jeff Grow Executive Director UBS Asset Management

New South Wales Treasury Corporation green bond takes cumulative Australian dollar labelled issuance past A$10 billion.

Italy's ENEL prints the first-ever sustainability-linked bond deal, for US$1.5 billion.

International Capital Market Association publishes the Sustainability Linked Bond Principles.

International Capital Market Association publishes the Climate Transition Finance Handbook.

New Kommunalbanken Norway green Kangaroo bond takes cumulative Australian dollar labelled issuance past A$50 billion.

Queensland Treasury Corporation prices a A$3 billion green-bond – the largest labelled bond print in Australia to date
Lead managers: ANZ, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, Deutsche Bank, UBS

“ESG in Australia is undersupplied and it feels like every investor is allocating to this part of the market. As far as QTC is concerned, this was a very well distributed deal that also features a pricing and a volume benefit. Issuing in green format helped.”
Craig Johnston Vice President, Australian and New Zealand Dollar Syndicate Deutsche Bank

International Finance Corporation’s NZ$300 million social bond takes total New Zealand labelled issuance past NZ$10 billion for the year, for the first and – so far – only time.

New Zealand Debt Management prices Australasia’s first sovereign green bond in NZ$3 billion syndication
Lead managers: ANZ, BNZ, Deutsche Bank, UBS, Westpac Banking Corporation New Zealand Branch

“We were able to revise pricing early in the process, which meant some initial bids fell away early on. But they were replaced by high-quality real-money names, including some green-focused and some new to our curve.”
Matthew Appleby Acting Head of Funding, Investment and Markets New Zealand Debt Management

New NBN Co green bond takes year-to-date labelled issuance past A$20 billion for the first time.