News
CEB wins Social Bond of the Year – Supranational 2025
14 April 2025
Paris – The Council of Europe Development Bank (CEB) wins the ‘Social Bond of the Year – Supranational Award,’ for its leadership in and commitment to the Social Bond market.
The CEB’s 7-year, EUR-denominated Social Inclusion Bond (SIB), issued in April 2024, has been awarded “Social Bond of the Year”, in the Supranational category, by Environmental Finance. This SIB represents the largest social bond issued from a Supranational in 2024, using a dedicated social bond framework. It also marks the CEB’s largest social syndicated issuance to date, with the highest oversubscription rate of any EUR denominated social bond from a Supranational in 2024, leading to the transaction being upsized to EUR 1.25 billion.
The proceeds of the SIB will be used by the CEB to finance a portfolio of social investments in its member states to promote socially inclusive growth. Investments will be targeted to four key sectors: housing for low-income families; health and social care; education and vocational training; and support for the micro, small and medium-sized enterprises to create stable jobs.
“We are truly delighted to win the Award for Social Inclusion Bond of the Year – Supranational by Environmental Finance. In 2024, the CEB celebrated the milestone of issuing over 10 billion SIBs since the inaugural issuance in 2017. This award highlights the tremendous social impact these bonds have unlocked” says Felix Grote, Head Funding & Investor Relations, on behalf of the funding team behind the transaction.
After 2023, this is the second time that the CEB is awarded Social Bond of the Year by Environmental Finance.
About Environmental Finance and its Bond Awards
Environmental-Finance.com is an online news and analysis service established in 1999 to report on sustainable investment, green finance and the people and companies active in environmental markets. Environmental Finance's Bond Awards seek to recognise those players in the sustainable bond market that demonstrate thought-leadership, best practice or innovation. An independent panel of judges consisting of industry experts – chosen for their knowledge, objectivity and credibility – select the winners in a secret ballot before announcing the results on their website.
The Council of Europe Development Bank (CEB) is a multilateral development bank, whose unique mission is to promote social cohesion in its 43 member states across Europe. The CEB finances investment in social sectors, including education, health and affordable housing, with a focus on the needs of vulnerable people. Borrowers include governments, local and regional authorities, public and private banks, non-profit organisations and others. As a multilateral bank with an excellent credit rating, the CEB funds itself on the international capital markets. It approves projects according to strict social, environmental and governance criteria, and provides technical assistance. In addition, the CEB receives funds from donors to complement its activities.