Thailand raised $750 million on a promise to nature itself

Borrowing money is ordinary. Borrowing money and staking your interest rate on saving forests is not. Thailand has issued Asia-Pacific's first sovereign sustainability-linked bond — $750 million over 15 years, structured with Asian Development Bank support. The terms tie the country's financing to two hard targets: cutting net greenhouse-gas emissions below 152 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent by 2035 (a 47% cut from 2019) and conserving at least 30% of its land and inland waters by 2030. Investors were convinced: subscriptions hit 2.8 times the amount on offer.