NatWest Group bond issue raises £631m to finance electric vehicles

NatWest Group’s first Electric Vehicle Green bond has raised €750 million (£631m) from institutional investors based in the UK, Europe and Asia. 

The use of proceeds will be exclusively used to finance or re-finance electric vehicles (EVs) by the bank’s asset finance arm, Lombard.

In 2023, Lombard provided UK business with more than £2.3 billion of climate and sustainable funding for sustainable transport.

Stuart Clark, head of climate transition for Lombard, said: “Being the first UK bank to issue a green bond dedicated to financing and refinancing electric vehicles further underscores our commitment and ongoing support to our customers in their transition to net zero.

“The automotive sector is a key enabler for the UK economy and we are committed to continuing to work with the industry towards its decarbonisation goals through providing a range of funding and leasing solutions.

“Lombard is one of the UK’s leading supporters of the automotive sector and we expect to continue to see growth in demand to fund low emission vehicles in the future.”

In 2019, the bank developed its Green, Social and Sustainability Financing Framework. Since launching the GSS Framework, NatWest Group had issued three social bonds and three green bonds with a combined aggregate principal amount at issuance of £3.9bn as of the end of last year.

NatWest Group intends to report on the allocation of the proceeds of the EV Green Bond and provide an estimate of the resulting tailpipe CO2 emissions avoided, based on management information and/or industry data, within 12 months of the date of issuance.