Sustainability strategy in business

Nedbank is the only South African bank to issue a sustainability tier II bond with this combination of use of proceeds categories, combining green and social impact categories beyond the usual combination of renewable energy, affordable housing, and green buildings, that have been the focus of similar issuances. Through this issuance, new categories from the Nedbank Sustainable Finance Fundraising Framework are utilised thereby increasing the range of impact to be made across categories.

The notional proceeds from this bond will be directed towards financing the following green and social assets, identified as high-priority needs for the country:

• Affordable housing: Targeting mortgages for low-income female borrowers, thereby supporting increased female homeownership and housing accessibility.
  
  
• Water infrastructure: Expanding supply of safe drinking water and improved sanitation through sustainable water infrastructure projects.
  
  
• Climate-smart agriculture: Financing initiatives that promote sustainable agricultural practices, enhancing productivity and water efficiency for local farmers.

These focus areas were identified by examining some of the most pressing issues faced in our local context today, particularly the challenge of unaffordable housing. Through collaboration with internal Nedbankers, such as a group from the Tabono Women Advancement Programme, the team ensured that our initiatives are aligned with our local context, our Nedbank sustainable finance fundraising framework and our broader sustainability strategy.

Corporate sustainability strategy

The Sustainable Finance Solutions (SFS) Team in CIB structured and coordinated the transaction in collaboration with the Public Sector Team and Agricultural Team in CIB, the Home Loans Team in Retail and Business Banking, and the Debt Capital Markets and Syndication and Distribution Teams in NCIB, to ensure its success.

The bond has been structured to ensure alignment with Nedbank’s sustainable finance fundraising framework and its sustainable development commitments. As part of the framework, the impact of the bond will be measured and reported over its lifetime. It will also provide information about the following:

• Number of mortgages provided to females for affordable housing.
• Annual capacity of water captured or delivered to South Africa.
• Reduction in water consumption and/per productivity gains because of climate-smart agriculture (e.g. tonnes or hectares of a product type per year).

The transaction falls under a pre-issuance second party opinion obtained on the Nedbank framework from S&P Global. Nedbank will continue to provide annual post-issuance compliance verification to the JSE, confirming ongoing adherence to the International Capital Market Association’s sustainable bond principles.

Our aim with the structure of this bond was to address critical local needs, such as water scarcity and affordable housing, while ensuring that it remains attractive to investors. Through a collaborative approach, we successfully combined green and social categories into 1 innovative financing solution. This instrument is evidence that the Nedbank Team is continuing to make a positive impact in these 3 key strategic themes identified at the start of the year:

1. Climate change mitigation and adaptation
2. Socio-economic progress
3. Financial inclusion