First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB), listed on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange, announced today, Thursday, the issuance and settlement of a fully digital green bond worth AED 1 billion for a three-year term.
This will be the first fully digital green bond issuance in the Middle East and North Africa region, in a move that combines sustainable finance with the digital infrastructure of capital markets.
The proceeds from the issuance will be allocated to support projects that deliver positive environmental benefits or contribute to addressing climate-related challenges, according to a bank statement.
The bond issuance price was set on October 13, 2026 at an interest rate of 5.75%, and its settlement was completed today via Euroclear’s digital financial markets infrastructure platform, with a maturity date of October 15, 2029.
This issuance further strengthens First Abu Dhabi Bank’s track record in digital capital markets, as it will be the bank’s second digital bond to be listed on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange, following its first digital bond issuance in 2025, making the bank the only issuer with digital bonds listed on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange.
The bank noted that this issuance comes within the framework of its commitment to sustainable financing and financing that supports transformation, as the bank, until the end of the first half of 2026, contributed to providing financing of these two types with a total value of AED 395 billion, thus achieving 79% of its target of AED 500 billion by 2030.
Euroclear’s digital markets infrastructure platform relies on distributed ledger technology to facilitate the issuance, distribution, and settlement of fully digital securities.
The platform, through its connection to existing secondary market services, also allows issuers and investors to benefit from digital innovations while maintaining access to the familiar infrastructure of financial markets.
First Abu Dhabi Bank and Standard Chartered Bank undertook the structuring of the fully digitally issued bonds.
Emirates NBD, First Abu Dhabi Bank, HSBC, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Asia Limited and Standard Chartered also served as joint lead managers for the issuance.
Citibank N.A. London served as the financial agent and agent for the fully digitally issued bonds, Dentons & Co. provided legal advice to the issuer, and Allen & Overy Sherman Sterling provided legal advice to the joint lead managers.
