Manila: The Asian Development Bank (ADB) launched back-to-back gender bonds this week with a CAD750 million (around $596 million) 7-year bond in the Canadian dollar maple market and a AUD700 million (around $542 million) 4.5-year bond in the Australian dollar kangaroo market.
The 7-year bond has a coupon of 1.5% payable semi-annually and a maturity date of 4 May 2028. It was priced at 99.393% to yield 39.3 basis points above the Canadian government bond due 1 June 2028. Joint lead managers are CIBC Capital Markets, RBC Capital Markets, Scotiabank, and TD Securities. The 4.5-year bond has a coupon of 0.8% payable semi-annually and a maturity date of 6 November 2025. It was priced at 99.859% to yield 21.95 basis points above the Australian government bond due 21 November 2025. Joint lead managers are Nomura, RBC Capital Markets, and TD Securities.
“We are thrilled with the strong reception to ADB’s first issuance of gender bonds in both the maple and kangaroo markets, which will help support ADB projects that promote gender equality and women’s leadership. These efforts are even more imperative as we recognize that women and girls are among the groups most severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic,” said ADB Treasurer Pierre Van Peteghem.
Accelerating progress in gender equality in Asia and the Pacific is one of seven operational priorities in ADB’s Strategy 2030. ADB recognizes that gender equality is critical in its own right as well as for its role in socioeconomic development. It is imperative that ADB effectively contributes to the efforts of accelerating gender equality outcomes in the region in five areas: economic empowerment, human development, decision-making and leadership, time poverty reduction, and resilience to external shocks.
ADB is committed to proactively supporting gender equality through gender-inclusive project designs in at least 75% of its operations by 2030.
ADB has issued more than $3.6 billion in thematic bonds across various themes, including gender, health, and education in response to investor demand to support environment, social, and governance goals. ADB is a frequent borrower in the capital markets and plans to raise around $34 billion to $36 billion in 2021.
ADB is committed to achieving a prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable Asia and the Pacific, while sustaining its efforts to eradicate extreme poverty. Established in 1966, it is owned by 68 members—49 from the region.
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