Europe’s industrial engine Germany looks like it has finally started revving up its green and sustainability-linked financing plans, though analysts say that cultural apprehensions might mean there is still some way to go before the biggest trend in the capital markets becomes ubiquitous in the country.

The Saudi Arabian power and water developer is helping drive the shift towards renewable energy in the Middle East and beyond.

Our winners from across the region.

Under the European Green Deal, we could soon see a €279bn ‘green investment wave’ from private investors. With the climate crisis high on the agenda, this is just one of the ways that the financial sector is being incentivised to change its practices. 

Central and Eastern Europe was on course to have an historic year for all the right reasons with Poland stunning markets to become the first ever emerging market name to print negative yielding euro debt. However, the Covid-19 pandemic sent credit spreads across the globe reeling and equity markets plunging record percentage points in a day, leaving investors and borrowers trying to decipher how to deal with the massive volatility.

German gas company VNG has become the latest name from the country to issue a green promissory note, as analysts say the country is warming to the idea of attaching climate language to its famously simple Schuldschein documentation.

The African Development Bank printed a US$3bn bond in March to combat the coronavirus pandemic that has taken the world by the throat, and other supranational and development issuers are following suit as the finance world looks for ways to help overcome the pandemic.

As blockchain technologies reach maturity, institutional investors are starting to think of digital assets as a worthy investment. Diginex is helping them make this change.

The CEE region is somewhat bolstered by its crisis fighting quasi-coordinator set up 12 years ago for the financial crisis. This time the working group has perhaps an even tougher assignment. 

Turkey’s Akbank and biscuit maker Ulker made successful trips to the loan market for deals totalling more than US$1bn at the start of April as the coronavirus tore through Europe, but economic pain is hitting the country hard and the central bank has taken an unprecedented step to start buying debt.

Munich-based AgTech company Agrando is helping bring farmers and their suppliers closer at a time when the coronavirus pandemic makes this a matter of survival.

The Gulf Cooperation Council states were rocked by the collapse in oil prices in April. Sovereign issuers from the region, however, still managed to print US$24bn of debt that month, but other names could struggle going forward.