Germany

Berlin Hyp became the first bank to issue a sustainability-linked bond (SLB) on Tuesday, 13 April, with a €500m 10 year senior preferred deal. Bodo Winkler-Viti, Berlin Hyp’s head of funding and investor relations, discussed with Sustainabonds’ Neil Day the pioneering first issue, the rationale for adopting the new instrument and the bank’s choice of metrics, and how SLBs fit in with its green bond issuance.

Berlin Hyp became the first bank to sell a sustainability-linked bond (SLB) yesterday (Tuesday), issuing a €500m 10 year senior preferred bond with a coupon step-up should it not hit a carbon reduction target, in a “courageous” move that met with dedicated investor interest and achieved tight pricing.

Berlin Hyp is set to become the first bank to launch a sustainability-linked bond next week, a 10 year senior preferred issue tied to a sustainability performance target of a 40% reduction in the carbon intensity of buildings financed by its loan portfolio.

The Association of German Pfandbrief Banks (vdp) has established minimum standards for Social Pfandbriefe, which build on existing green and social standards, and proponents hope they will encourage standardisation and provide impetus to the sector.

MünchenerHyp issued its first senior green bond on Wednesday, a €500m eight year deal that is also its first senior non-preferred euro benchmark, with the German bank moving to take advantage of persistent demand in credit markets at higher yields in spite of elevated rates volatility.

North Rhine-Westphalia is the only German state to have issued sustainable bonds and is planning a seventh later this year. Axel Bendiek, head of treasury and investor relations, and Kirsten Häger, head of sustainable finance, at the ministry of finance of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW), told Sustainabonds’ Neil Day how transformation towards a more sustainable economy underpins its strategy.

Deutsche Bank entered the green bond market on Tuesday as part of a push towards a recently-announced €200bn sustainability target, with a €500m six year non-call five senior preferred deal that achieved a €4.5bn-plus book and pricing inside fair value, global head of issuance and securitisation Jonathan Blake told Sustainabonds.

As a conduit for Covid-19 economic mitigation measures, KfW is at the heart of Germany’s fight against the impact of the coronavirus. New treasurer Tim Armbruster and head of IR Jürgen Köstner spoke to Sustainabonds’ Neil Day about the practical and market challenges it faces in its latest role, and its overall sustainability ambitions.