NDB's 3-year panda bond targets a record $1b

Shanghai-headquartered New Development Bank on Wednesday issued a three-year 7 billion yuan ($1 billion) bond in the Chinese interbank bond market, recording the largest panda bond released by a multilateral development bank.

The proceeds will be used to finance infrastructure and sustainable development in NDB's member countries. Panda bonds are renminbi-denominated notes issued by a non-Chinese mainland issuer in the onshore Chinese market.

The new panda bond is part of the second renminbi bond program that the NDB kicked off in China in October 2020. The NDB had received local regulatory approval to raise up to 20 billion yuan in the China interbank bond market within two years of the second program's registration date.

Upon completion of the second program, the NDB will have a cumulative 30 billion yuan raised from bonds issued in China, making it the largest multinational development bank issuer in the country.

Despite the volatility in the global market, a wide range of high-quality investors have shown interest in the bonds, the NDB said.

Leslie Maasdorp, the NDB's vice-president and chief financial officer, said the issuance is a major milestone. The size of the transaction equals that of a US dollar-denominated benchmark deal, which shows that the NDB is a high-quality issuer in the renminbi bond market, he said.

In all, 22 entities issued 57 panda bonds in 2021 and raised 85.7 billion yuan. As of Feb 22, nine panda bonds were issued this year for 14.5 billion yuan, according to market tracker Wind Info.

Established by Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa－BRICS－in 2015, the NDB's mission is to support infrastructure projects in BRICS and other emerging market economies.