Sustainable Bonds

Sustainable bonds 

We believe that good business and good trade can contribute to a better Canada and a better world – but it will take more than good intentions or “business as usual” to drive progress on many of the deep-rooted social and environmental challenges we face as a society.  

EDC has been issuing green bonds since 2014 and was the first Canadian financial institution to do so. These bonds support climate-related transactions, and at the peak, EDC had outstanding bonds that prevented millions of tonnes of CO2 emissions as detailed in the impact reports below.

Green bonds to sustainable bonds

Now, we have evolved our Green Bond Framework to reflect the broader nature of responsible, sustainable business and our own business model and future aspirations.

Our new Sustainable Finance Framework adds capability to issue social, sustainable and transition bonds, in addition to green bonds.

Our Sustainable Bond Framework includes:

• Green bonds to support initiatives related to renewable energy, energy efficiency, pollution and waste management, natural resources, clean transport and green buildings, among others.
• Social bonds to support affordable infrastructure, access to health and nutrition, and businesses owned and/or led by equity seeking groups such as women, Indigenous, BIPOC and LGBTQ2S+ people. 
• Sustainable bonds to finance green and social projects.
• Transition bonds that relate to activities that significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

EDC’s 2022 Sustainable Bond Framework was the first bond framework in North America to include and define transition bonds, which are targeted specifically at facilitating the transition from a carbon intensive to a low carbon economy. Transition financing is a key pillar of EDC’s commitment to achieve net zero by 2050, helping Canadian businesses access the financing they need to innovate, achieve long-term business growth, and become more competitive on the global stage. 

In line with best practices, EDC obtained a second party opinion from Sustainalytics.

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