About
The Green Bond Principles are intended for broad use by market participants:
- They provide issuers guidance on the key components involved in launching a credible Green Bond;
- They aid investors by ensuring availability of information necessary to evaluate the environmental impact of their Green Bond investments; and
- They assist underwriters by moving the market towards standard disclosures that will facilitate transactions.
The GBP consist of four main components:
- Use of Proceeds
- Process for Project Evaluation and Selection
- Management of Proceeds
- Reporting
On the basis of these components, the GBP shall enable market participants to better facilitate green transactions.
Who does it impact?
Bond issuers and other actors within the bond market.
Status: Launched
- The GBP were established in 2014 by several investment banks.
- The GBP are administrated by the International Capital Market Associating serving as Secretariat.
- The Principles were last updated in June 2025. In June 2022, Appendix 1 of the GBP was updated to make a distinction between unsecured debt obligations and Secured Green Bonds and to provide further guidance. The latest Norwegian version is the 2018 version.
- Q&As related to Secured Green bonds were updated in June 2025.
Relation to other initiatives and regulations
The Green Bond Principles are drafted by the International Capital Market Association and are closely connected to the Social Bond Principles and the Sustainability Bond Guidelines. See also the EU Green Bond Standard.
Participants
Membership is open to organisations that have issued, underwritten or placed, or invested in a Green, Social or Sustainability Bond.
Thommessen's comments
The GBP, together with the Social Bond Principles and the Sustainability Bond Guidelines, have become the globally leading framework for issuance of green, social and sustainability bonds.
Whereas the GBP explicitly recognise several broad categories of eligibility for Green Projects, the Green Bond Principles do not provide details on which bonds qualifies as 'green' and the more specific definitions are left to the issuer to determine.