EU negotiators agree on rules defining European green bonds

(EurActiv, 2 Mar 2023) The European Parliament and member states reached an agreement on Tuesday (28 February) to establish requirements for a European green bond standard, to prevent financial greenwashing.

The EU Commission first presented the proposal to regulate the use of the term “European green bond” – or EuGB – for environmentally sustainable bonds in July 2021. The aim of the regulation is to define which financial products can be labelled as European green bonds.

This should help prevent the greenwashing of financial products – something that has been called out by both environmental organisations, like Greenpeace, and international financial institutions, like the International Monetary Fund.

On Tuesday, EU negotiators reached a provisional deal on the rules which should enable investors to better identify bonds aligned with the EU green goals, while also reducing the risk of greenwashing as the green bond market rapidly expands.

“Tonight the EU has taken a big step to green this massive market by adopting the first regulation in the world on green bonds,” EU lawmaker Paul Tang, rapporteur on the file, said in a statement following the agreement.

External link

EurActiv, 2 Mar 2023: EU negotiators agree on rules defining European green bonds