CaixaBank has issued a social bond worth €1 billion in the form of non-preferred senior debt. The aim of the bond is to finance activities and projects that contribute to combating poverty, promoting education and welfare, and promoting economic and social development in the most disadvantaged areas of Spain. This way, the issuance supports Sustainable Development Goals 1, 3, 4 and 8 of the UN’s 2030 Agenda.
The bond has a maturity of four years, with the option of early redemption in the third year by the issuer, and it has had a demand of over €1.75 billion, drawing the interest of 125 institutional investors.
The price of the bond is set at 150 basis points over the mid swap, 20 bp below the starting price thanks to the high demand. The coupon has been set at 4.625%. It is also the first social issuance of a Spanish bank in the euro market in 2023.
The banks placing the issue are CaixaBank, Commerzbank, Crédit Agricole CIB, HSBC and Natixis.
Five social bonds and six green bonds
This is the fifth social bond issued by CaixaBank and, taking into account the six green bonds already issued, it is the eleventh bond linked to the Sustainable Development Goals published by the bank in 2019 and updated in November 2022.
With this, CaixaBank continues to consolidate its status as a leading institution in Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) issuances and the benchmark in sustainable banking. CaixaBank is also the largest issuer of ESG bonds on the euro credit market, with€10 billion and £500 million worth of ESG issues currently outstanding in the market.
CaixaBank was the first Spanish bank to issue a social bond in support of the UN SDGs in September 2019. Since then, CaixaBank has been showing its social commitment by issuing one social bond every year: July 2020 (Covid-19 Social Bond), May 2021, January 2022 and May 2023. With today's issuance, CaixaBank has placed on the market social bonds for a nominal value of €5 billion.
