BANK of the Philippine Islands (BPI) will issue its first two-year, 100-million Swiss franc-denominated, negative-yielding green bond, proceeds of which will be used to fund environmental projects through its Green Finance Framework.

In a disclosure to the local bourse on Friday, the Ayala-led bank said it priced on Aug. 29 its ASEAN green bond amounting to 100 million Swiss francs bonds at 100.040% with a re-offer yield of -0.02%.

This is the first Swiss franc-dominated issue out of the Philippines carrying an annual coupon rate of 0.00%.

The bonds will be issued on Sept. 24 and are due on Sept. 24, 2021.

“The net proceeds from the bonds will be used for the financing and/or re-financing, in whole or in part, of “green” eligible projects, as further described in BPI’s Green Finance Framework,” the statement read.

This is the first ASEAN green bond for BPI and the first rated Philippine green bond in international capital markets.

This is another drawdown from its $2-billion medium term note (MTN) program, the bank said.

BPI Capital Corp., Credit Suisse and UBS are the lead managers for the transaction.

BPI’s Green Finance Framework was established in June, providing guidelines for any green bonds or loans issued by the bank including the evaluation and selection of eligible projects, management of proceeds, and reporting, among others.

The lender established its $2-billion medium-term note program in June last year.

In its maiden drawdown from the MTN, BPI raised $600 million in August last year via five-year senior unsecured fixed-rate bonds quoted at 4.25%.

The Ayala-led lender posted a net income of P7.01 billion in the second quarter, up 46.8% from a year ago.

BPI shares went up by 45 centavos or 0.51% to close at P89.95 apiece on Friday. — BML

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