BDO Unibank, Inc. (BDO) has raised $100 million from the issuance of its maiden Blue Bond through an investment from the International Finance Corporation (IFC).

In a statement, the bank said this issuance will expand financing for projects that help prevent marine pollution and preserve clean water resources, while supporting the country's climate goals. This marks another milestone for BDO, being first in the private sector to issue Blue Bonds in Southeast Asia.

BDO said its issuance reinforces the Bank's commitment to sustainable finance, allowing the Bank to provide more support to critical areas such as water conservation, wastewater treatment, plastic recycling, sustainable tourism, fisheries, and sustainable seafood processing among others.

More importantly, the Bond will help BDO expand its Sustainable Finance Framework to include projects supporting the country's blue economy, while establishing a new asset class in the Philippine debt market.

The pioneering Blue Bond has a tenor of seven years and will adhere to the International Capital Market Association (ICMA) Green Bond Principle and IFC's recently launched Blue Finance Guidelines.

“We welcome IFC’s timely support for BDO’s maiden Blue Bond issuance,” said BDO Chairperson Teresita Sy-Coson who noted that the IFC investment marks their two-decade partnership.

IFC will also help BDO identify projects that can be funded by the Blue Bond while building its capacity in terms of monitoring the impact of these projects. IFC’s role is likely to further inspire confidence among other investors, promoting market competition.

“Given that the coastal blue economy is critical to the Philippines, a blue bond instrument will be key to the nation’s growth trajectory,” said IFC Country Manager for the Philippines Jean Marc Arbogast.

He added that, “By supporting the first blue bond issuance in the country, IFC continues its tradition of supporting the development of capital markets through issuances of thematic bonds and mainstreaming climate finance in the banking sector.”

“Moving forward, a robust blue economy will help create jobs and alleviate poverty while strengthening the marine ecosystem in the Philippines,” Arbogast said.

This project, part of IFC’s blue finance pilot across four other countries—Indonesia, Thailand, India, and China—will be among the first blue bond issuances by commercial banks in Asia using the IFC’s Blue Finance Guidelines, a blue-specific framework and metrics to monitor the use of proceeds and to report on relevant impact.