First Abu Dhabi Bank Issues AED 1 Billion Digital Green Bond via Euroclear D-FMI
Key points
- FAB has issued an AED 1 billion ($272 million) three-year digital green bond through Euroclear's D-FMI platform, listed on ADX with a 5.75% coupon.
- This is FAB's second digital bond; its first was a $100 million issuance in July 2025 using HSBC's Orion distributed ledger platform in Hong Kong.
- The deal is at least the fourth digital bond issued by a MENAT bank via D-FMI in the past year, and the third D-FMI bond issuance in the past two months.
- FAB Group CFO Lars Kramer cited greater automation and more efficient execution as the operational rationale for using digital infrastructure in sustainable finance.
- Repeat issuance by major regional banks suggests D-FMI is consolidating a position as a recurring distribution channel in MENAT digital capital markets rather than a one-off experiment.
First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB), described as the Middle East’s largest bank, has issued an AED 1 billion ($272 million) digital green bond through Euroclear’s D-FMI (Digital Financial Market Infrastructure) platform, marking the institution’s second venture into digital bond issuance.
The three-year Digitally Native Green Notes carry a 5.75% coupon and are listed on ADX. FAB’s first digital bond, a $100 million issuance in July 2025, ran on HSBC‘s Orion distributed ledger platform based in Hong Kong, making the shift to Euroclear’s infrastructure a notable change of venue for the bank’s second outing.
The issuance adds to a pattern of acceleration on the D-FMI platform: this is at least the fourth digital bond from a MENAT (Middle East, North Africa, and Turkey) bank using D-FMI in the past year, and the third D-FMI bond issuance in the past two months alone. FAB’s Group CFO Lars Kramer framed the deal as evidence that digital infrastructure can support sustainable finance through greater automation and more efficient execution, building on the groundwork laid by the 2025 debut.
For operators watching the MENAT digital capital markets corridor, the pace of repeat issuance on D-FMI suggests the platform is moving from proof-of-concept territory toward a more routine distribution channel for the region’s larger banks.