Abu Dhabi: Following its success with the first-ever Euro denominated Green Bond issue from the MENA region last week, First Abu Dhabi Bank PJSC (“FAB”), rated Aa3 by Moody’s, AA- by Standard & Poor’s and AA- by Fitch (all with stable outlook), today priced a highly successful Green Bond issue in the Swiss Franc market.  The CHF 200 million 4-year Bond was issued at SARON + 54 bps and a coupon of 1.0625%.

This was FAB’s second public green issuance in 2022 (following the highly successful Euro 500 million Green Bond issued last week) and marked FAB’s return to the Swiss Franc market since 2021.  Despite the challenging market conditions, the deal was a great success by achieving FAB’s target size as well as price objectives.  The bank was able to attract a high-quality Swiss investor base that has now developed name familiarity with FAB.  Pricing of the deal compares favourably to the bank’s USD funding levels when swapped back to USD as well as priced inside FAB’s CHF curve.

The bond was executed as a Green Bond under FAB’s Sustainable Finance Framework reaffirming FAB’s commitment to sustainable financing, in line with the UAE’s net zero 2050 strategic initiative.

Rula Al Qadi, Managing Director and Head of Group Funding at FAB, said: “We are delighted to be back in the Swiss Franc market with an immensely successful green bond issuance today. Given the challenging market conditions, FAB has been able to successfully access niche markets like the Euro last week and the Swiss Franc today that are helping us achieve our price and size objectives. This is our third Green Swiss Franc bond issuance, and we remain the only bank from the MENA region to issue green bonds in the Swiss Francs market. This highlights the importance of our commitment to achieving net zero by 2050, in line with the vision of the UAE.  Today’s deal priced inside our CHF curve and compares favourably to our USD curve (on a swapped basis), which is testament to FAB’s credit standing amongst international investors.”

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ABOUT FIRST ABU DHABI BANK (FAB)

FAB is the UAE’s largest bank and one of the world’s largest and safest financial institutions. FAB’s vision is to create value for its employees, customers, shareholders and communities to grow stronger through differentiation, agility and innovation.

Headquartered in Abu Dhabi, the bank’s international network spans five continents, providing global relationships, expertise and financial strength to support local, regional and international businesses seeking to do business at home and abroad. FAB is a trusted adviser and regional partner to major institutions, emerging companies and individuals seeking to do business in the UAE, the MENA region and beyond. As an engine of growth for the region, it helps customers to thrive and grow stronger by managing risk, providing access to capital and facilitating trade flows across developed and emerging markets.

With total assets of over AED 1 Trillion (USD 272 Billion) as of December-end 2021, FAB is rated Aa3/AA-/AA- by Moody’s, S&P and Fitch, respectively - the strongest combined ratings of any bank in the MENA region. The Bank has been    ranked by Global Finance as the Safest Bank in the UAE and the Middle East, and the 32nd Safest Bank globally. The Banker’s Top 1000 World Banks 2021 rankings, measured by Tier 1 capital, ranked FAB as #1 in the UAE, #3 in the Middle East and #94 across the globe. FAB is also a regional sustainability leader (MSCI ESG rating of AA, ‘Leader’ category), and a constituent of MSCI ESG Leaders and FTSE4Good EM indices.