The webinar on the issuance of sustainable financial instruments, including external review aspects, was held for financial market participants

As part of a Roadmap of the Agency of the Republic of Kazakhstan for Regulation and Development of the Financial Market to raise awareness on ESG and sustainable finance issues, the AIFC Green Finance Center delivered a training webinar on November 22, 2023, for financial institutions titled “Issuance of sustainable financial instruments, including external review of green, social and sustainable bonds/loans and related assessment of compliance with the criteria of green projects”. 

The webinar covered the main types of ESG financing instruments (including green, social, sustainability and sustainability-linked instruments), the process of issuing ESG bonds, borrowing through thematic loans, the costs of issuing thematic bonds, as well as the regulatory basis of green and ESG financing in Kazakhstan. 

In particular, independent assessments (external reviews) as part of the issuance of financial ESG instruments were covered in detail, including the assessment of compliance with the green project criteria, types of external review, as well as differences between approaches to labeling and external review of bonds and loans. AIFC Green Finance Center speakers focused on plans to update the Green Taxonomy and introduce a Social Taxonomy in Kazakhstan, given the international practices and national priorities. Work of the AIFC Green Finance Centre on these taxonomies as important elements of the ESG financing ecosystem is actively underway in collaboration with the government agencies involved. 

A representative of the Climate Bonds Initiative provided an overview of the current green bond certification scheme under the Climate Bonds Standard, which is a type of external review for a thematic bond, and also spoke about the main features and experiences of using the Climate Bonds taxonomy – recognized as one of the leading benchmarks in green project definition.  

Reference: 

The Astana International Financial Centre (AIFC) is an independent jurisdiction with a favourable legal and regulatory environment and a developed infrastructure for starting and doing business, attracting investment, creating jobs and developing Kazakhstan’s economy. 

AIFC Green Finance Centre Ltd. is a private company established under the existing law of Astana International Financial Centre, established to introduce green financial instruments in Kazakhstan and Central Asia, promote AIFC as a green financial centre, and attract green investments to Kazakhstan. More information about the company is available at the corporate internet resource gfc.aifc.kz.