Cleary Gottlieb acted as deal counsel in the issuance by BNP Paribas of $1 billion fixed-to-floating senior nonpreferred notes due 2027.
The issuance was a takedown from its $50 billion medium-term note and warrant program. This was BNP Paribas’ first offering of “green bonds” in the U.S. dollar market.
The 2027 notes will bear interest at a fixed rate of 1.675% per annum from their date of issuance until June 30, 2026, and at a floating rate of interest, to be calculated using three-month term SOFR, from June 30, 2026, until maturity.
The notes were placed in the United States pursuant to Rule 144A and outside the United States pursuant to Regulation S. The notes were issued as part of BNP Paribas’ capital raising efforts to meet the total loss absorbing capacity (TLAC) requirements for global systemically important banks. The net proceeds of the issue of the notes will be allocated or reallocated from time to time to the financing and/or refinancing of eligible green assets as defined and further described in the BNP Paribas Green Bond Framework dated September 2020 available here.
The transaction priced on June 23, 2021, and closed on June 30, 2021. BNP Paribas Securities Corp. acted as sole bookrunner and global coordinator, leading an underwriting syndicate comprised of several international investment banks acting as joint lead managers and co-managers.