The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) announced on Tuesday that it is investing 30 million euros in the first international bond of Raiffeisenbank Croatia (RBA), which has a total issuance value of 300 million euros and will be listed on the Luxembourg Stock Exchange.
This is already the fifth EBRD purchase of senior preferred bonds eligible under the EU’s Minimum Requirements for Regulatory Capital and Eligible Liabilities (MREL), issued by a financial institution in Croatia, and the third purchase related to RBA.
– We are pleased to be one of the main investors in this first international public issuance of Raiffeisenbank Croatia. This successful international placement will further expand the overall pool of investors in the Croatian banking sector – said EBRD Director for Central Europe Victoria Zinchuk.
The funds raised from the issuance of this bond will help RBA achieve regulatory compliance, diversify its funding base, and increase its capacity to absorb losses and resilience to crises, the statement said.
Additionally, this will further promote the EBRD’s green agenda in Croatia. Specifically, RBA will allocate an amount equal to 120 percent of the EBRD’s investment for financing green projects, mainly in the areas of renewable energy, green buildings, and energy efficiency, which would be eligible under the EBRD’s Green Economy Transition (GET) approach.
To date, the EBRD has invested more than 4.4 billion euros in Croatia across 239 projects, the statement concludes.
