Fangda represented Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) on its RMB1.5 billion 3-year sustainable development bond offering on China’s interbank bond market, which was closed on May 26, 2022.

The bonds were issued under AIIB’s Sustainable Development Bond Framework and  represent a landmark in China’s sustainable development bond market for being:

• the first sustainable development bond issuance in China by a supranational issuer
• the first sustainable development bond issuance in China conducted under the issuer’s sustainable development bond framework
• the first sustainable development bond issuance by an international development institution under the pilot program for social bonds and sustainability bonds launched by the National Association of Financial Market Institutional Investors (NAFMII) of China

The bonds were offered to institutional investors in and outside China (including through the Bond Connect Regime) and received a large order book. The bonds were priced at a coupon rate of 2.4% per annum.

In November 2021, NAFMII promulgated the Q&As on Pilot Program of Social Bonds and Sustainability Bonds, aiming to channel funds into Green, Social, Sustainability (GSS) sectors and promoting the development of the GSS bond market in China. AIIB’s sustainable development bond offering sets an example for other multilateral development banks and well-known international issuers looking into China for future GSS bond offerings. The transaction also contributes to the efforts for innovations and developments in panda bonds as well as China’s GSS bond market.

Fangda assisted AIIB in drafting all the transaction documents in English and Chinese and advised AIIB on all aspects of the transaction. The Fangda team was led by partner Christine Chen with key members including Helen Zhao, Hailey Ma, Taiyu Li and Helen Wang. Fangda also advised AIIB on its first panda bond offering that carried the “Combating COVID-19 label” in June 2020 as part of the Crisis Recovery Facility (CRF).