Technical Assistance Facility
Issue a Blue Bond
From eligibility to issuance, the BBA's Technical Assistance Facility helps issuers build credible, standards-aligned blue bonds.
Is a blue bond right for you?
Sovereign governments, development banks, financial institutions, and corporates can all issue blue bonds, provided they have eligible ocean or water-related projects to finance.
Eligibility alone is not enough. A credible blue bond must demonstrate measurable environmental outcomes, typically against the IFC Guidelines for Blue Finance, the ICMA Practitioner's Guide, and TNFD. The BBA helps you get there.
Eligible projects include:
- Water supply, wastewater treatment, and water efficiency
- Ocean-friendly products, marine biotechnology, and pollution reduction
- Cleaner transport and shipping, and port upgrades
- Sustainable fisheries and aquaculture
- Coastal and marine habitat restoration and protection
- Low-impact, certified coastal tourism and recreation
What our Technical Assistance Facility provides
Technical Assistance
Hands-on support to assess readiness, build your project pipeline, and prepare for issuance.
Framework Alignment
We help structure a use-of-proceeds framework aligned to the Green Bond Principles and blue finance guidelines.
Investor Visibility
We position your issuance with the investors actively looking for credible blue bonds.
Partner Connections
We connect you with reviewers, advisors, and development partners across the market.
The path to issuance
Every issuance is different, and timelines depend on your starting point. The stages below are indicative of a typical engagement.
Introduction and eligibility screening
We review your context, candidate projects, and issuance goals to confirm a blue bond is the right fit.
Readiness assessment
We assess your project pipeline, governance, and reporting capacity against blue bond standards.
Framework development
We help you build a robust use-of-proceeds framework and impact reporting approach.
Review and investor engagement
We support you through an independent Second Party Opinion and connect you with prospective investors.
Issuance and impact reporting
You go to market, then track and report on proceeds and environmental outcomes.
We've done this before
Sri Lanka's first blue bond
The BBA supported DFCC Bank on Sri Lanka's first blue bond, a LKR 3 billion (approximately USD 10 million) issuance directed toward clean drinking water, sustainable fisheries, marine renewable energy, and climate adaptation for coastal communities.
Read the case study