Ecobank Group has launched what it described as the world’s first International Capital Market Association (ICMA) commercial bank-issued nature bond on the London Stock Exchange, raising fresh capital to support biodiversity protection, sustainable agriculture and water infrastructure projects across Africa.

The $450 million bond, which received Moody’s highest sustainability quality score of SQS1 Excellent, is designed to channel funding to smallholder farmers, sustainable agriculture businesses and water systems in 24 African markets, including biodiversity-priority countries such as Côte d’Ivoire, Burkina Faso and Ghana.

BThe pan-African banking group said the initiative aims to address the significant gap in nature financing on the continent. Although Africa hosts about 25 per cent of global biodiversity, it receives less than three per cent of global nature finance, according to the bank.

Ecobank noted that proceeds from the bond will support farmers adopting sustainable agricultural practices, agri-processors with verified deforestation-free supply chains and water infrastructure projects that help protect freshwater ecosystems relied upon by millions of people.

The bank added that 81 per cent of the eligible lending portfolio is allocated to countries where agricultural land-use change is a major driver of biodiversity loss, helping direct capital to areas where environmental impact is expected to be greatest.

To ensure accountability, Ecobank said all eligible loans financed under the programme will be subject to seven independently verified sustainability conditions, supported by monitoring measures such as deforestation screening and supply-chain traceability requirements.

Unlike traditional green bonds that finance a broad range of environmental initiatives, the nature bond designation focuses specifically on nature-related outcomes, including biodiversity conservation, sustainable agriculture, land-use management and water infrastructure.

The transaction attracted strong investor interest, with the final order book reaching more than $1.36 billion, nearly four times the original target size.

Ecobank said the oversubscription enabled it to increase the bond size by $100 million and tighten pricing by 50 basis points.

Commenting on the development, Group Chief Executive Officer of Ecobank Transnational Incorporated, Jeremy Awori, described the issuance as a landmark moment for sustainable finance in Africa.

“This transaction is a defining moment for African sustainable finance. Investors did not just support this bond. They demanded more of it, allowing us to increase the size and tighten pricing,” he said.

Awori added that Ecobank had spent four years building the governance, systems and accountability structures needed to make nature finance both credible and scalable across the continent.

“This bond is ultimately about the farmers, cooperatives and communities whose livelihoods depend on healthy ecosystems,” he said.

Also speaking, Group Head of Sustainability and Environmental and Social Risk Management (ESRM) at Ecobank, Rachael Antwi, said the bond was designed to connect international capital with practical investments in Africa’s real economy.

“Nature finance will only scale in Africa if it is practical, measurable and connected to the real economy. This bond is designed to do that by linking international capital to eligible lending for sustainable agriculture and water infrastructure across 24 countries,” Antwi said.

She added that the initiative reflects Ecobank’s efforts to ensure nature finance supports both environmental resilience and the livelihoods of communities that depend on healthy ecosystems.