PRE-ISSUANCE VERIFICATION LETTER LOW CARBON BUILDINGS CRITERIA OF THE CLIMATE BONDS STANDARD

Sustainalytics conducted a pre-issuance verification of PKO Bank Hipoteczny SA's green covered bond to ensure its alignment with the Low Carbon Buildings criteria of the Climate Bonds Standard Version 2.1. The verification, performed between March 28 and May 15, 2019, concluded that the bond's framework for financing residential green buildings in Poland is in conformance with the required standards.

• PKO Bank Hipoteczny SA (PKO BH) intends to issue a green covered bond to finance or refinance a portfolio of residential green building mortgages in Poland, targeting the top 15% of low carbon buildings in the country.
• Eligibility for new or existing residential buildings is based on two primary criteria: having an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) stating the Polish technical condition TC 2017 or newer (including Nearly-Zero Energy Buildings), or being constructed after 2017.
• For existing residential buildings undergoing upgrades (such as thermo-modernization or efficiency upgrades), eligibility requires a carbon emissions reduction of at least 30% for bonds with a duration up to 5 years, increasing linearly up to 50% for bonds with a 30-year term.
• The eligibility criteria were developed with a methodology from Drees & Sommer, a consulting firm based in Stuttgart, Germany, which confirmed that the absolute performance thresholds align with the top 15% requirement of the Climate Bond Standard.
• Sustainalytics verified that PKO BH has established internal processes for the systematic segregation and tracking of proceeds, and that unallocated proceeds will be invested in financial market instruments as described in the Act of 29 August 1997 on Covered Bonds and Mortgage Banks.
• The verification concluded that the green covered bond is in conformance with the Low Carbon Buildings criteria of the Climate Bond Standard Pre-Issuance Requirements, although a third-party verifier for the post-issuance assurance exercise had not yet been appointed at the time of the report.

APA

Climate Bonds Initiative (2019). PRE-ISSUANCE VERIFICATION LETTER LOW CARBON BUILDINGS CRITERIA OF THE CLIMATE BONDS STANDARD. https://www.climatebonds.net/files/drupal-files/files/PKO%20Bank%20Hipoteczny%20CBI%20Pre-Issuance%20Verification%20Letter.pdf

Chicago

Climate Bonds Initiative. PRE-ISSUANCE VERIFICATION LETTER LOW CARBON BUILDINGS CRITERIA OF THE CLIMATE BONDS STANDARD. 2019. https://www.climatebonds.net/files/drupal-files/files/PKO%20Bank%20Hipoteczny%20CBI%20Pre-Issuance%20Verification%20Letter.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Climate Bonds Initiative |title=PRE-ISSUANCE VERIFICATION LETTER LOW CARBON BUILDINGS CRITERIA OF THE CLIMATE BONDS STANDARD |date=2019 |url=https://www.climatebonds.net/files/drupal-files/files/PKO%20Bank%20Hipoteczny%20CBI%20Pre-Issuance%20Verification%20Letter.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{climatebondsinitiative2019preissuance, author = {{Climate Bonds Initiative}}, title = {{PRE-ISSUANCE VERIFICATION LETTER LOW CARBON BUILDINGS CRITERIA OF THE CLIMATE BONDS STANDARD}}, institution = {Climate Bonds Initiative}, year = {2019}, url = {https://www.climatebonds.net/files/drupal-files/files/PKO%20Bank%20Hipoteczny%20CBI%20Pre-Issuance%20Verification%20Letter.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }