Earlier this year, the French government
issued its first sovereign Green Bond, marking a significant step in the growth
of the market. BNP Paribas was joint lead manager on the EUR7bn Green Bond, the
proceeds of which will be used to finance expenditures identified as promoting
the ecological and energy transition.
The bond’s maturity of 22 years makes it
the largest and longest dated Green Bond issuance to date. The significance of
this benchmark Green Bond was certainly reflected in the investor demand, as
the deal was more than three times oversubscribed.
Stephanie Sfakianos, Head of Sustainable
Capital Markets at BNP Paribas commented on the deal “There’s a lot more
private finance in infrastructure now and this deal, which supports subsidies
given by the government rather than funding direct public investment in these
projects is a good template for the future.”
The significance of the French sovereign
Green Bond is also highlighted in the reporting process, says Agnes Gourc,
Sustainable Capital Markets BNP Paribas: “France has been very ambitious on the
reporting front. It’s clear they are trying to improve the structuring of what
already exists in the market, so sovereigns now have a very good benchmark to
follow”.
This
issuance is part of the growing trend in Sustainable and Responsible Investing
(SRI), and over USD100bn in Green Bonds has been issued to date.
