Guidelines for the issuance of thematic labelled financial instruments

The 'Guidelines for the issuance of thematic labelled financial instruments' is a guide developed by the Climate Bonds Initiative and Latinex, with support from IDB Invest. It provides a comprehensive framework for issuers in Panama and the wider Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) region to issue Green, Social, Sustainable, and Sustainability-linked (GSS+) financial instruments. The document outlines the criteria for various labels, the necessary components for issuance—such as the use of proceeds and external reviews—and the reporting requirements to ensure market integrity and avoid greenwashing. It also details the role of Panama's Sustainable Finance Taxonomy and international standards like the ICMA Principles and the Climate Bonds Standard in guiding sustainable investment.

• The guidelines define GSS+ as an umbrella term encompassing green, social, sustainable, and sustainability-linked financial instruments, as well as sub-categories like blue and gender labels.
• Green labelled instruments are defined by their use of proceeds to finance projects with clear environmental benefits, such as renewable energy, energy efficiency, and clean transport. The guidelines recommend using the Green Bond Principles, the Climate Bonds Taxonomy, or Panama’s Sustainable Finance Taxonomy to determine eligibility.
• Social labelled instruments earmark proceeds for projects with a social focus, including affordable basic infrastructure, access to essential services, and employment generation. The guidelines highlight the importance of targeting vulnerable and marginalised groups, such as people with disabilities, migrants, and women.
• Sustainability-linked financial instruments are performance-based and differ from use-of-proceeds instruments because they raise general purpose funds. Their financial or structural characteristics, such as coupon step-ups or step-downs, are tied to the achievement of predefined sustainability performance targets (SPTs) measured by key performance indicators (KPIs).
• The guidelines establish a rigorous process for use-of-proceeds instruments, requiring a clear definition of eligible projects, a documented decision-making process for selection, and a formal mechanism to monitor the management of proceeds to ensure traceability.
• External reviews are recommended to reinforce the credibility of GSS+ labels. These include Second Party Opinions (SPO), verification/certification (such as the Climate Bonds Standard), and rating/scoring. Post-issuance external reviews are mandatory for sustainability-linked instruments to verify KPI performance against SPTs.
• Panama launched its Sustainable Finance Taxonomy in March 2024, making it the first country in Central America and the third in the LAC region to do so. The taxonomy covers seven environmental objectives across 11 economic sectors and 65 activities, designed to be interoperable with the EU Taxonomy and other regional frameworks.
• The LAC region has seen a significant rise in sustainability labels, which accounted for 54% of labelled emissions in 2023. Chile, Mexico, and Brazil are the leading issuers in the region by volume.
• In Panama, the GSS+ market is primarily driven by the private sector rather than sovereign issuance. As of December 2023, total investment reached USD 531 million across 20 deals, with a recent shift in green bond proceeds toward renewable energy, specifically wind, solar, and hydropower.
• The guidelines introduce 'Orange labelled financial instruments' specifically designed to tackle gender inequality. These instruments require transparency regarding the use of proceeds for women's empowerment and recommend that the issuer's team have at least 30% representation from women and gender minorities.

APA

Contreras, V. D., Borges, S., Barrenechea, A., Isaza, D., Costa, D., & Coloma, B. (2024). Guidelines for the issuance of thematic labelled financial instruments. Climate Bonds Initiative. https://www.climatebonds.net/files/documents/publications/Climate-Bonds_Guidelines-for-the-issuance-of-thematic-labelled-financial-instruments_February-2025_2025-03-03-131133_soqx.pdf

Chicago

Contreras, Valeria Dagnino, Sofía Borges, Andrea Barrenechea, Diana Isaza, Daniel Costa, and Bruno Coloma. Guidelines for the issuance of thematic labelled financial instruments. Climate Bonds Initiative, 2024. https://www.climatebonds.net/files/documents/publications/Climate-Bonds_Guidelines-for-the-issuance-of-thematic-labelled-financial-instruments_February-2025_2025-03-03-131133_soqx.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Contreras |first1=Valeria Dagnino |last2=Borges |first2=Sofía |last3=Barrenechea |first3=Andrea |last4=Isaza |first4=Diana |last5=Costa |first5=Daniel |last6=Coloma |first6=Bruno |title=Guidelines for the issuance of thematic labelled financial instruments |publisher=Climate Bonds Initiative |date=August 2024 |url=https://www.climatebonds.net/files/documents/publications/Climate-Bonds_Guidelines-for-the-issuance-of-thematic-labelled-financial-instruments_February-2025_2025-03-03-131133_soqx.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{contreras2024guidelines, author = {Contreras, Valeria Dagnino and Borges, Sofía and Barrenechea, Andrea and Isaza, Diana and Costa, Daniel and Coloma, Bruno}, title = {{Guidelines for the issuance of thematic labelled financial instruments}}, institution = {Climate Bonds Initiative}, year = {2024}, month = aug, url = {https://www.climatebonds.net/files/documents/publications/Climate-Bonds_Guidelines-for-the-issuance-of-thematic-labelled-financial-instruments_February-2025_2025-03-03-131133_soqx.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }