Ahren Lester

ESMA opens sustainable bond prospectus technical advice consultation

The European Securities Markets Authority (ESMA) has opened a consultation on proposed technical advice on sustainability disclosures updates to the EU bond prospectus regulation, including around post-issuance reporting requirements.

IDB Invest backs ground-breaking BBVA 'biodiversity bond' in Colombia

IDB Invest has invested in a landmark $70 million green bond from the Colombian arm of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (BBVA) which is dedicated to biodiversity-related projects.

S&P: Green Asset Ratio is 'incredibly exciting' part of EU Taxonomy - in principle

The "most exciting" part of the EU Taxonomy regulation are the Green Asset Ratio (GAR) disclosures for banks as it provides investors with clear links between financial and sustainability reporting, according to S&P Global Ratings.

CBI publish 'game-changing' agriculture criteria

The Climate Bonds Initiative (CBI) has published its "game-changing" sustainability criteria for agricultural production projects, with the influential not-for-profit hoping it provides a "forward-thinking tool" for one of the more complex areas of sustainable finance.

Azerbaijan, IFC sustainable taxonomy 'roadmap' to launch at COP29

The Central Bank of Azerbaijan and International Finance Corporation (IFC) are set to publish a sustainable finance taxonomy "roadmap" to encourage interoperability between the rapidly growing number of national 'green lists' in development.

Invesco 'blown away' by demand for climate adaptation blended finance fund

Invesco said it has been "blown away" by the early institutional investor demand for its ground-breaking emerging market (EM) climate adaptation blended finance fund, including from North America.

South Korea 'reviewing' return to sovereign green bond market

The government of South Korea is currently considering the possibility of issuing another sovereign green bond, three years after its last issuance.

Barclays: 'Surprising' rise in principal repayment penalty SLBs

There has been a "surprising" increase in the use of penalties applied to the principal repayment at maturity for sustainability-linked bonds (SLBs), according to Barclays - a move that it said could make the struggling instrument "less appealing" to investors.

M&G launch €50m sustainable bond fund

Sustainable sukuk a 'potential accelerator' for Islamic finance industry

Record sustainable sukuk issuance points to the catalytic potential of the market for interest in Islamic finance, S&P Global Ratings Mohamed Damak tells Ahren Lester