KATHMANDU, JANUARY 22

Investors around the world are seeking ways to both safeguard their financial interests and contribute to a sustainable future.

At the same time, much greater investment is needed to address global challenges including climate change, biodiversity loss, and poverty. For well over a decade, bond markets have provided opportunities to confront these challenges and help achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Starting with the first green bond issued by the World Bank in 2008, investment in green, social, and sustainable bonds supporting environmental and social projects has grown to almost USD 4 trillion.

While this growth is impressive, such bonds are still a niche part of the USD 100 trillion bond market. What will it take to realize the potential of sustainable investing? In a word, transparency will be critical - and here, green, social, and sustainability labeled bonds are playing a key role in the growing focus on transparency to weigh sustainability risks and opportunities.

A version of this article appears in the print on January 23, 2023, of The Himalayan Times.