Sustainable Debt Market Summary H1 2021

The sustainable debt market saw record-breaking growth in H1 2021, with combined labelled issuance reaching USD 496.1 billion. Green bonds led the growth, particularly in developed markets, while sustainability-linked bonds (SLBs) emerged as a rapid growth segment for corporates. The report also highlights the nascent state of transition bonds and the need for standardized, ambitious definitions to avoid 'transition-washing'.

• Combined labelled issuance of Green, Social and Sustainability (GSS), Sustainability-linked and Transition debt reached USD 496.1 billion in the first half of 2021, representing a 59% year-on-year increase from H1 2020.
• Green bond issuance in H1 2021 reached USD 227.8 billion, more than doubling the volume from H1 2020 and bringing the cumulative green bond volume to USD 1.3 trillion. The report forecasts that annual green bond issuance could exceed USD 1 trillion by 2023.

APA

Climate Bonds Initiative (2021). Sustainable Debt Market Summary H1 2021. https://www.climatebonds.net/files/documents/publications/Sustainable-Debt-Highlights-H1-2021.pdf

Chicago

Climate Bonds Initiative. Sustainable Debt Market Summary H1 2021. 2021. https://www.climatebonds.net/files/documents/publications/Sustainable-Debt-Highlights-H1-2021.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Climate Bonds Initiative |title=Sustainable Debt Market Summary H1 2021 |date=September 2021 |url=https://www.climatebonds.net/files/documents/publications/Sustainable-Debt-Highlights-H1-2021.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{climatebondsinitiative2021sustainable, author = {{Climate Bonds Initiative}}, title = {{Sustainable Debt Market Summary H1 2021}}, institution = {Climate Bonds Initiative}, year = {2021}, month = sep, url = {https://www.climatebonds.net/files/documents/publications/Sustainable-Debt-Highlights-H1-2021.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }