The corporate and investment banking arm of Nedbank has been invited to become the first South African green bond issuer to contribute to the Nasdaq Sustainable Bond Network.

The invitation to join the network comes after Nedbank CIB successfully listed two renewable-energy bonds on the green segment of the JSE in 2019.

The bank said that the two bonds were significantly oversubscribed, and their proceeds are now funding a number of high-potential solar and wind renewable energy projects.

The Nasdaq Sustainable Bond Network allows members to issue green and social bonds - loans used to finance projects that benefit the environment or achieve positive socio-economic outcomes. 

The network, launched at the end of 2019, now has more than 40 issuers from 10 countries who have accepted invitations to become members. 

Being a member of the network means that Nedbank CIB will be able to publish information about its green or social bonds on the second largest stock exchange in the world and raise capital from a larger investor pool. 

Sustainable investing, also termed ESG investing for its prioritisation of environmental, social and governance issues, has been attracting more interest and funding in recent years. According to the Forum for Sustainable and Responsible Investment, a non-profit in the US, sustainable investment funds grew their assets in by 38% to $12 trillion between 2016 and 2018.

In SA, shareholder activists like JustShare are also increasingly putting companies under pressure to consider environmental, social and governance concerns when they invest or fund new projects. Earlier this year, the JSE also expanded its green bond segment to a sustainability segment so that companies can also issue sustainability and social bonds.