1 Mar 2021

NIB expands its lending bond investments

In addition to its current green bond investments, NIB has started to invest in social bonds, sustainability bonds and sustainability-linked bonds issued by companies or municipalities in the Bank’s member countries. NIB will also allocate EUR 75 million to support a pan-Baltic commercial paper market. The investments broaden NIB’s mandate and offer new tools to support productivity and the environment in the Nordic-Baltic region.

NIB has invested into various municipal and corporate green bonds since 2016, when the EUR 500 million Lending Green Bond framework was established. The investments have been used to finance projects that are environmentally sustainable and contribute to mitigating climate change.

Since NIB’s early participation, the green bond market in the Nordic-Baltic expanded rapidly and has seen an increasing supply of other labelled bonds, such as social bonds, sustainability bonds and sustainability-linked bonds. NIB’s investments in these bonds will continue to support the advancements of green bond frameworks and develop the sustainable bond market.

The expanded framework also allows NIB to further deliver on its mandate to improve productivity and benefit the environment in the Nordic-Baltic region. Green, sustainability and sustainability-linked bonds are in line with the Bank’s environmental mandate objectives, while social and sustainability bonds are closely linked to NIB’s productivity mandate, especially in relation to sustainable economic growth and equal opportunities.

Furthermore, NIB will create a dedicated allocation of EUR 75 million for commercial paper investments for issuers from the Baltic States. NIB’s investment allocation will be part of the pan-Baltic initiative to develop the financial markets via increasing liquidity, adding alternative to bilateral financing, and enhancing the price discovery. The project fosters market efficiency and business environment in NIB’s member countries, and therefore is in line with the Bank’s productivity mandate.