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Picking a World Cup-free evening for the most prestigious awards ceremony in international debt markets in the summer of 2026 was always going to be tricky. Yet despite England’s opening match taking place on the same night, the GlobalCapital Bond Awards once again brought together the leading institutions and individuals shaping the global debt markets. For ICAP, sponsor of the awards, the event provided an opportunity not only to celebrate excellence across the industry, but also to strengthen relationships with the clients and market participants at the heart of its business.

In the spring of 2025, Mr. Lanciné Diaby, Director General of Côte d'Ivoire's Debt Management Office (Direction Générale des Financements, or DGF), stood before GlobalCapital's audience to accept two of the industry's most prestigious distinctions: “Most Impressive Issuer in Africa” and “Most Impressive Funding Official in Africa”. His message at the time was simple: these awards were not an endpoint, but a milestone on a much longer journey. The Republic would continue to innovate and diversify its funding sources. Fast forward to a year later, Côte d'Ivoire has done just that with the execution, among others, of a Samurai bond and a sustainability-linked loan (SLL) with a novel double World Bank Group guarantee.