Nasdaq (Nasdaq: NDAQ) has announced the launch of two new market segments in Stockholm – Nasdaq Stockholm Sustainable Commercial Papers and Nasdaq Stockholm Sustainable Products. The new market segments will list sustainable commercial papers and structured products, respectively, and follows the strong growth of Nasdaq’s Sustainable Bond Market.
The launch of these two segments further highlights the increased interest in sustainable investment alternatives,” said Ann-Charlotte Eliasson, Head of Fixed Income Listings, Nasdaq Nordic. “We are continuously exploring how we can expand our offering in this space, in order to better meet strong demand from both issuers and investors.
The Sustainable Commercial Papers segment is launched today, September 25, and lists green commercial papers issued by the Swedish real estate company Vasakronan AB. The market, which is the first ever of its kind, is intended to raise awareness around a new type of sustainable debt instrument, while providing transparency that allows investors to track their green investments. The instruments are issued under Vasakronan’s green finance framework.
The first structured products in the Sustainable Products segment are listed on September 27. The products are issued by Credit Agricole Financial Solutions, arranged by Swedish brokerage firm Garantrum Fondkommission, and are built from Credit Agricole’s green bond framework.
It is exciting to see that the Nordic markets continue to innovate within so many different areas of sustainable finance,” commented Ann-Charlotte Eliasson. “Green commercial papers have the potential to materially affect the outstanding amounts of green debt instruments, while green structured products provide further possibilities for retail investors to lend to sustainable projects and assets.
Further information for issuers
Issuers interested in listing sustainable debt instruments at any of Nasdaq’s Nordic Exchanges or MTFs need to comply with the rule book for issuers, as well as additional criteria covering sustainability. The sustainability criteria are based on the Green Bond Principles and cover three areas:
- Use of proceeds: The proceeds raised should be used for assets or projects with clear envioronmental or socio-economic benefits.
- External Review: An independent and experienced third party must assess the issuer’s issuance framework.
- Reporting: The issuer must report on the use of proceeds on an annual basis at minimum.