Climate Investment Opportunities: Climate-Aligned Bonds & Issuers 2020

The 2020 research identifies a global universe of USD 913.2 billion in unlabelled climate-aligned bonds from 420 issuers across 45 countries. Transport is the dominant theme, accounting for 55% of the volume, followed by Energy (24%) and Water (10%). China is the largest single source, representing 36% of the global total, while Developed Markets (DM) account for 50%. The report emphasizes a significant opportunity for refinancing, as over 40% of these bonds will mature by 2024, potentially increasing the labelled green bond market by 65% within nine years if transitioned. The analysis also highlights the role of the EU Taxonomy in improving disclosure and the potential for green hydrogen and electric vehicle infrastructure to drive future issuance.

• The global climate-aligned bond universe consists of USD 913.2 billion in outstanding unlabelled bonds from 420 issuers across 45 countries, with 311 issuers being fully-aligned (≥95% revenue) and 109 being strongly-aligned (≥75% revenue).
• Transport is the most prevalent climate theme, representing 55% of the global volume (USD 502.3 billion), with railway companies accounting for 90% of that theme's volume.
• China is the largest source of climate-aligned bonds, accounting for 36% of the global universe with USD 325 billion in outstanding debt, dominated by the transport sector (80% of its total).
• Developed Markets (DM) represent 50% of the climate-aligned universe, with Europe as the leading region (USD 319 billion) and France as the largest DM country (37% of DM volume).
• Emerging Markets (EM) account for 14% of the global volume (USD 123 billion), with South Korea as the largest source. Energy is the dominant theme in EM, representing 50% of its issuance.
• There is a substantial opportunity to scale the labelled green bond market through refinancing, as USD 372 billion (over 40%) of climate-aligned bonds will mature by 2024.
• The climate-aligned universe is characterized by high credit quality, with 90% of the global volume being investment grade and nearly 30% rated AAA.
• In the real estate sector, an evaluation of the top 100 companies by debt found that only 25 have issued green bonds or loans, and only 10 have science-based climate targets, indicating a gap in reporting and financing.
• Green hydrogen is identified as a critical future technology for decarbonizing heavy transport and industry, though it currently has a minimal footprint in the climate-aligned universe due to high costs and low installed capacity.

APA

Giorgi, A., & Michetti, C. (2021). Climate Investment Opportunities: Climate-Aligned Bonds & Issuers 2020. Climate Bonds Initiative. https://www.climatebonds.net/files/documents/publications/Climate-Investment-Opportunities-Climate-Aligned-Bonds-Issuers-2020_2025-02-17-163023_uypz.pdf

Chicago

Giorgi, Amanda, and Carlotta Michetti. Climate Investment Opportunities: Climate-Aligned Bonds & Issuers 2020. Climate Bonds Initiative, 2021. https://www.climatebonds.net/files/documents/publications/Climate-Investment-Opportunities-Climate-Aligned-Bonds-Issuers-2020_2025-02-17-163023_uypz.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Giorgi |first1=Amanda |last2=Michetti |first2=Carlotta |title=Climate Investment Opportunities: Climate-Aligned Bonds & Issuers 2020 |publisher=Climate Bonds Initiative |date=July 2021 |url=https://www.climatebonds.net/files/documents/publications/Climate-Investment-Opportunities-Climate-Aligned-Bonds-Issuers-2020_2025-02-17-163023_uypz.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{giorgi2021climate, author = {Giorgi, Amanda and Michetti, Carlotta}, title = {{Climate Investment Opportunities: Climate-Aligned Bonds \& Issuers 2020}}, institution = {Climate Bonds Initiative}, year = {2021}, month = jul, url = {https://www.climatebonds.net/files/documents/publications/Climate-Investment-Opportunities-Climate-Aligned-Bonds-Issuers-2020_2025-02-17-163023_uypz.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }