The German federal state of Baden-Württemberg has successfully raised €800m on global capital markets, with proceeds set to finance, among other things, local energy efficiency and biodiversity projects.
The issuance marks Baden-Württemberg’s fifth consecutive fundraising round, with the four previous issuances already having been met with strong investor demand.
Spreads for the bonds – which are aligned with the Green Bond Market Framework, ICMA’s Green Bond Principles and the EU taxonomy – were this year particularly tight according to Danske Bank, which facilitated the transaction. More than 65% of the bonds were placed outside Germany, the bank said.
About a third of the bond’s proceeds will fund green buildings, while a further 27% has been committed to energy efficiency projects. A further 15.4% will go towards clean transportation, with the remainder funding biodiversity projects, wastewater management and conservation.
The successful fundraising comes against the backdrop of a global slowdown in GSS issuance, which dropped by 15% this year. However, this has been countered by stronger figures in the EU, where more than €8.5bn was raised in the first half of 2025 alone, with the new EU Green Bond Standard (EuGB) helping to offer investors greater clarity.
The state in south west of Germany, which hosts the famous black forest and borders France and Switzerland, is governed by a coalition of the Green Party and the conservative CDU. Two years ago, it became the first federal state to commit to investing its €17bn federal funds only in sustainable, Paris-aligned assets. This applies, among other areas, to the retirement assets of Baden-Württemberg’s public sector workers.
