JSE launches Caribbean's first green, social and sustainability-linked bond guide

The Jamaica Stock Exchange has launched a handbook for green, social, sustainability and sustainability-linked bonds, which partners describe as the first thematic bond guide for the English-speaking Caribbean.

Managing director Dr Marlene Street Forrest told a launch event that the document helps issuers, investors and intermediaries navigate local listing requirements alongside voluntary International Capital Market Association principles. She said the guide extends work that began when the Government of Jamaica, with Green Climate Fund support, named the exchange executing agency for a green bond policy project in 2021. By the end of 2023 the project had completed a market assessment, mapped participants and held an inaugural ESG workshop. The JSE then secured one year of technical support from IDB Invest, and HPL LLC was engaged in January 2024 to draft the guide, which was finished on schedule. The exchange said the publication is available through its investor section on jamstockex.com and that it is building dedicated market infrastructure and education tools around sustainable finance.

IDB Invest climate change officer Molini Stini said global GSS+ issuance has reached about US$1 trillion per year, while the English-speaking Caribbean has recorded only two such transactions. She said capital is available globally but issuers need credible, labelled assets, which the guide is meant to help create. Consultant Ivon Voked of HPL outlined stakeholder workshops and benchmarking against other exchanges, and noted that cumulative thematic issuance in the English-speaking Caribbean has been about US$150 million from three issuers, with no Jamaican thematic bond issued to date.

Finance and Public Service Minister Dr Nigel Clark tied the framework to Jamaica's IMF Resilience and Sustainability Facility reforms, including a structural benchmark to establish green bond issuance and trading infrastructure. He said Jamaica must compete for hundreds of billions of dollars in mandated green capital through transparent guidelines and independent verification, and urged banks and entrepreneurs to bring adaptation, renewable energy and other projects to market. He also referenced a household solar tax credit of up to J$3 million against income tax.

Caricris chief executive Derek Rajak said the rating agency will provide verification and second-party opinions aligned with the guide. Innovative Energy Group director Wayne Ray, whose renewable-energy company listed on the main market on 28 March 2024, welcomed the framework and signalled interest in green bond listings. Representatives from CIBC Caribbean and NCB Capital Markets pledged financing support. Exchange officials said several prospective issuers are exploring listings and expect competition for the market's first green bond during 2024.