FAB Issues MENA’s First Digitally Native Green Bond Through Euroclear’s Digital Infrastructure
First Abu Dhabi Bank has achieved a milestone in sustainable finance with the successful issuance of AED1 billion in three-year Digitally Native Green Notes, representing the first digital green bond from the Middle East and North Africa region.
First Abu Dhabi Bank has successfully issued and settled AED1 billion in three-year Digitally Native Green Notes, establishing itself as the pioneer of digital green bond issuance throughout the Middle East and North Africa region. This landmark transaction seamlessly unites the imperatives of sustainable finance with the innovations of digital capital markets infrastructure, thereby reinforcing the bank’s steadfast commitment to financial advancement and its transformative role in shaping the region’s capital markets landscape.
The notes were priced on 13th October 2026 at an interest rate of 5.75 percent and settled through Euroclear’s Digital Financial Market Infrastructure, a sophisticated platform utilising distributed ledger technology to facilitate the issuance, distribution and settlement of digitally native securities. The instruments will mature on 15th October 2029, providing investors with a carefully structured investment vehicle aligned with environmental sustainability objectives.
This issuance represents the bank’s second digital bond listing on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange, following its inaugural digital bond issuance in 2025. First Abu Dhabi Bank remains the sole issuer with digital bonds listed on the exchange, underscoring its pioneering position in this transformative financial domain.
The transaction builds upon First Abu Dhabi Bank’s comprehensive commitment to sustainable and transition finance. As of the first half of 2026, the institution had facilitated AED395 billion in sustainable and transition financing, achieving 79 percent of its ambitious AED500 billion target for 2030. Lars Kramer, Group Chief Financial Officer at First Abu Dhabi Bank, articulated the bank’s vision: “The future of finance must be both sustainable and innovative. With MENA’s first digitally native green bond, we are bringing these priorities together and setting a new benchmark for the region’s capital markets. Building on our inaugural digital bond in 2025, we are demonstrating how digital infrastructure can advance sustainable finance through greater automation and more efficient execution.”
The issuance reflects the bank’s dedication to developing financing solutions that support the transition to a low-carbon economy whilst reinforcing the United Arab Emirates’ established leadership in financial innovation. Euroclear’s D-FMI platform provides connectivity with established secondary market services, enabling issuers and investors to benefit from digital innovation whilst maintaining access to familiar market infrastructure.
The transaction was structured by First Abu Dhabi Bank and Standard Chartered Bank, with Emirates NBD Bank, First Abu Dhabi Bank, HSBC Bank plc, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (Asia) Limited and Standard Chartered Bank serving as Joint Lead Managers. Citibank acted as Fiscal Agent and Digitally Native Notes Agent, whilst Dentons & Co. and Allen Overy Shearman Sterling LLP provided legal counsel to the issuer and Joint Lead Managers respectively.
Source: WAM