Public sector borrowers were the pioneers of the green and socially responsible themed bond market. Now that the sector is burgeoning, they are still leading the way. From sovereign issuers bringing green bonds of hitherto unseen size, to supranationals structuring catastrophe bonds to protect poor countries, the supranational, sovereign and agency market has had a busy 12 months. Borrowers have also brought a range of new social and sustainability bonds to market. Others are searching for more assets to add to their SRI funding mix, as well as branching out into new currencies for the first time and exploring the possible issuance of tailor-made, privately placed notes and when they are not bringing deals to market, issuers are driving forward new advances in impact reporting. Meanwhile, the question of where SRI bonds should price relative to conventional curves remains a central question for the future of the sector. GlobalCapital brought together several funding officials at the biggest SRI issuers in the public sector to discuss these issues with investment banks and socially responsible investors.

Investor demand at the long end of the euro SSA curve has left bankers puzzled, with interest rates set to rise in 2019 following the end of the European Central Bank's Public Sector Purchase Programme.

Over the weekend, Harris County in Texas voted in favour of issuing bonds to pay for flood defences, a year after Hurricane Harvey caused terrible damage in the Houston region. It is part of a wider tussle over who bears the risk of catastrophes — and the capital markets are at the forefront of the discussion.

Österreichische Kontrollbank mandated banks for a three year dollar benchmark global on Tuesday, with strong investor demand for the currency as a result of a lack of supply.

Finland and KfW received strong investor demand for the first sizeable deals in the euro public sector market following the summer.

The World Bank’s first attempt at a blockchain bond raised A$110m ($80m) of two year paper in a public deal — created, allocated and settled using blockchain technology.