Ecobank Group has launched the world’s first ICMA commercial bank-issued Nature Bond on the London Stock Exchange, creating a new route for international and African capital to protect Africa’s biodiversity.
Moody’s awarded the transaction its highest possible sustainability quality score, SQS1 Excellent. The bond will support African farmers, sustainable agriculture businesses and water systems, protecting some of the planet’s most important ecosystems.
Impact on the ground in Africa
Africa is home to some of the world’s most important natural capital, including arable land, tropical forests, freshwater systems and biodiversity across hundreds of millions of hectares. But, until now, private nature capital has not flowed to Africa at the scale the continent’s ecological significance warrants in global ecological resilience.
Despite hosting 25% of global biodiversity, Africa receives less than 3% of nature finance. Ecobank’s Nature Bond is a direct response to this gap. It will support smallholder farmers adopting sustainable agricultural practices, agri-processors with verified deforestation-free supply chains, and water infrastructure protecting freshwater ecosystems relied upon by millions of people.
Unlike many conservation-focused financing vehicles, Ecobank’s Nature Bond channels capital directly through Africa’s real economy, financing businesses and communities whose day-to-day activities shape environmental outcomes at scale.
The investments will be made in 24 markets, with significant deployment in biodiversity-priority countries such as Côte d’Ivoire, Burkina Faso and Ghana.
Importantly, 81% of the eligible lending pool is allocated to countries where agricultural land-use change is the primary driver of biodiversity loss, helping direct capital to the areas where it can have the greatest environmental impact.
The framework also incorporates independent monitoring and verification mechanisms, including deforestation screening and supply chain traceability requirements, helping ensure that financed activities deliver measurable nature-positive outcomes. Every eligible loan carries seven independently verified sustainability conditions.
The launch of this bond also comes as governments and investors worldwide face mounting pressure to mobilise private capital for biodiversity protection and sustainable land use.
What is a Nature Bond?
A Nature Bond, under the ICMA secondary designation, requires proceeds to actively contribute to nature-positive outcomes, including transforming economic activities to reduce the drivers of nature loss at scale.
The Nature Bond was designed to reach those that conservation-focused instruments were not designed to serve, farmers, agri-processors and water operators whose daily activities collectively determine ecosystem outcomes.
While green bonds typically finance a broad range of environmental objectives, the Nature Bond designation focuses the use of proceeds specifically on nature-related outcomes, including biodiversity, sustainable agriculture, land use and water infrastructure.
The transaction
The USD 450 million bond was priced following strong investor demand with the final orderbook exceeding USD 1.36 billion – 3.9x the original target size. The strength of demand enabled Ecobank to increase the transaction by USD 100 million and tighten pricing by 50 basis points.
The transaction attracted support from both international and African investors, demonstrating Ecobank’s unique ability to mobilise capital across global and African markets.
For the first time, international and African capital markets have a credible, scalable mechanism for financing the protection of African natural capital through the communities who depend on it.
Jeremy Awori, group chief executive officer, Ecobank Transnational Incorporated, commented:
“This transaction is a defining moment for African sustainable finance. Investors did not just support this bond. They demanded more of it, allowing us to increase the size and tighten pricing.
We are not a bank that simply labels bonds. We have spent four years building the systems, governance and accountability needed to make nature finance credible and scalable in Africa.
This bond is ultimately about the farmers, cooperatives and communities whose livelihoods depend on healthy ecosystems.”
Rachael Antwi, group head of Sustainability and ESRM, Ecobank Transnational Incorporated, added:
“Nature finance will only scale in Africa if it is practical, measurable and connected to the real economy. This bond is designed to do that by linking international capital to eligible lending for sustainable agriculture and water infrastructure across 24 countries. It reflects the systems and standards Ecobank has built to ensure nature finance supports both environmental resilience and the communities whose livelihoods depend on healthy ecosystems.”
