Responsible Funds, June 14: Caisse des Dépôts, BMO, Jana Partners, Vattenfall

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Caisse des Dépôts (CDC), the French sovereign wealth fund, has issued its first sustainability bond. It raised €500m, of which 90% will be used to finance green projects and the remaining 10% channelled to social projects. The five-year bond priced at 13 basis points above the French sovereign curve, tightening from initial price guidance of +16bps.
Circulate Capital, an investment boutique which aims to address ocean plastic in Southeast Asia, has announced a partnership with USAID, the American aid agency. Under its terms, USAID is to provide funding up to a $35m, 50% loan-portfolio guarantee for investments in the recycling value chain in South and Southeast Asia, aimed to incentivise continued private capital investment.
OP and Finnfund, a Finnish financial institution and development impact investor, has partnered to launch the country’s first emerging market impact fund. The OP Finnfund Global Impact Fund I will primarily focus on supporting agriculture and forestry, renewable energy and financial institutions. Additional details were not available at press time.
Fiji is reportedly planning to issue a blue bond, having already engaged prospective buyers, said a government minister during this year’s budget presentation. The country became the first emerging markets sovereign green bond issuer, when it came to market with a FDJ100m ($50m) transaction back in 2017.
BMO Financial Group, North America’s eighth largest bank, will allocate $250m of seed capital for a forthcoming impact investment fund to address sustainability problems. The announcement was made as part of the bank’s unveiling of its new Purpose and Bold Commitment Platform which includes a separate $400bn commitment for sustainable finance by 2025. This will comprise of $250bn of client investments aligned to sustainable objectives and $150bn direct investments.A high-profile impact fund which was backed by US pension giant CalSTRS, along with celebrities and sustainable investors figures including Sting and Bob Eccles, is rumoured to have had its launch delayed. New York-based activist hedge fund Jana Partners had originally said in 2018 that the fund would launch in February, but it will reportedly shift its focus to co-investing on an ESG basis in specific companies.
Vattenfall, Swedish state-owned utility, has issued its debut green bond, raising €500m for renewables and related infrastructure, energy efficiency, electrification of transport and heat, and industrial projects. The bond priced at 55 basis points over mid-swaps. It was given the highest sustainability rating by third-party provider Cicero.
More than a third of financial advisers are likely not to recommend ESG funds for a client, according to an FT Adviser poll. 44% said their decision would be driven by the type of client, while 22% said they would be inclined to recommend ESG-focused products.
Nigeria issued its second sovereign green bond earlier this week, which was more than twice oversubscribed. The issuance raised N15bn ($420m) which will be used to fund solar and wind farms, irrigation, reforestation and ecological restoration. The bond has a term of seven years and pays a 14.5% coupon.