The German government said Thursday it intends to issue €210 billion ($232 billion) worth of debt securities in 2020, which for the first time will include green bonds in an effort to build a financial market for sustainable investments.
Aimed at establishing a liquid, green interest rate reference for the eurozone, Europe's largest economy follows other European Union member states, including France, the Netherlands and Poland, in coming to the green bond market as an issuer.
The German green bonds, proceeds from which will be ring-fenced to finance sustainable projects, are expected to be issued in the second half of next year, said the German Finance Agency, which manages the country's debt financing, in a news release Thursday.
"We expect a green issuance volume between a high single-digit and a low double-digit billion amount," a spokeswoman at the agency said.
Out of this total amount of debt that is set to be issued next year, some €148 billion is set to be issued for capital markets investors, €62 billion will be issued as money market instruments, and between €6 billion and €8 billion as inflation-linked bonds.
