Sweden announces green bond issuance by 2020

The Swedish National Debt Office announced Thursday it will issue green bonds in 2020 at the latest to fund budget items related to sustainable investments and projects.

The agency said in a brief statement it will have to first develop a green framework to define which items will be funded by the issuance.

“The decision that the State will now issue green bonds is an important part of the transition to sustainable development. The financial market plays a key role in this transition, and the Government wants to improve the opportunities for sustainable investments by promoting the market for green bonds,” Swedish minister for financial markets Per Bolund said in a separate press release.

Besides Sweden, Germany is also considering launching its maiden sovereign green bond issuance in 2020, per a Financial Times report last week.

The two countries will join the list of sovereign green bond issuers currently populated by Poland, France, Nigeria, Fiji, Belgium, Indonesia, Lithuania, Republic of Seychelles, Ireland, the Netherlands and Chile.

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