India’s First WASH Bond Raises ₹180 Crore for Clean Water and Sanitation

Mumbai witnessed a landmark moment on 1 October 2026, when NABKISAN Finance Limited, a subsidiary of NABARD, listed India’s first Social Bond dedicated to the Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) sector on the National Stock Exchange (NSE). This pioneering initiative marks a significant step in leveraging capital markets for sustainable rural development.

The WASH Social Bond attracted strong investor interest, achieving an oversubscription of 1.8 times and enabling NABKISAN to mobilize ₹180 crore. Structured as a five‑year instrument, the bond offers a coupon rate of 8.10%, matures in September 2031, and carries the highest domestic credit ratings — CRISIL AAA (Stable) and CARE AAA (Stable). The funds will be directed toward expanding access to clean water, sanitation, and hygiene facilities in rural and underserved communities, thereby improving health outcomes, supporting livelihoods, and enhancing overall quality of life.

The listing ceremony at NSE featured addresses from representatives of NABARD, NABKISAN, Water.org, Trust Group, and NSE, culminating in the ceremonial bell ringing to mark this milestone in India’s sustainable finance journey.  

Key Highlights of the Bond

• Fundraising success: Oversubscribed 1.8 times, raising ₹180 crore.
• Bond details:
  • Tenure: 5 years (maturing September 2031)
  • Coupon rate: 8.10%
  • Credit ratings: CRISIL AAA (Stable) and CARE AAA (Stable)
• Purpose: Funds will expand access to safe water, sanitation, and hygiene solutions in rural and underserved communities.

Impact on Rural Development

• Improve health: Reducing waterborne diseases.
• Strengthen livelihoods: Better sanitation infrastructure.
• Enhance quality of life: Clean water and hygiene facilities.

Investor Confidence in Sustainable Finance

Shri Immanuvel Ganesan, MD & CEO of NABKISAN, highlighted that the strong investor response reflects growing confidence in sustainable finance. The WASH Bond shows how capital market instruments can mobilize resources for development sectors while delivering measurable social impact.

Stakeholder Collaboration

• Water.org: Served as Technical Advisor and Knowledge Partner.
• Market institutions, advisors, trustees, and arrangers: Contributed to the successful issuance and listing.

Symbolic Launch

The listing ceremony included addresses from NABARD, NABKISAN, Water.org, Trust Group, and NSE representatives, followed by the ceremonial bell ringing — symbolizing the start of a new chapter in India’s sustainable finance journey.

Broader Significance

The WASH Bond reinforces NABARD’s and NABKISAN’s commitment to innovative financing solutions that support sustainable and inclusive rural development. It also deepens India’s sustainable finance market, setting a precedent for future social bonds targeting critical development sectors.

SBI Raises $500M in Overseas Bond Issue

State Bank of India, acting through its London branch, has announced the conclusion of successful pricing of USD 500 million of “Regulation S” bonds at a coupon rate of 5.25 per cent. The bond is benchmarked against the 5yr US Treasury and priced at a spread of 88 bps over the benchmark. The bonds will be listed on SGX-ST, India INX and NSE-IX.

The transaction received an overwhelming response and saw strong interest from investors across geographies with a peak orderbook of USD 2.46 billion with 145 investors. On the basis of strong investor demand, the price guidance was revised from T+120 bps area to T+88 bps resulting in price compression of 32 bps. The Notes will carry rating of BBB, BBB- and BBB+/Stable from S&P, Fitch and CareEdge Global respectively.

SBI Chairman Shri CS Setty

Commenting on the transaction, Shri Challa Sreenivasulu Setty, Chairman, SBI said “The successful pricing of USD 500 million, during the ongoing global uncertainities, is a testament to the strong appetite for bonds of SBI and to the diversified investor base the Bank has in offshore capital markets, allowing it to efficiently raise funds from the leading global fixed income investors. The issue has priced at the tightest spread among all Indian public bond issuances since the RBI swap window announcement and reflects the confidence of the global investors in India’s growth story in general and credit quality of SBI in particular. The tight pricing achieved amid the evolving global macro environment has demonstrated containment in the borrowing cost for issuers from India. ”

BNP PARIBAS, Citigroup, Crédit Agricole CIB, Emirates NBD Bank PJSC, HSBC (B&D), MUFG, and Standard Chartered Bank were the Joint Bookrunners for this offering.

BlackRock Looking to Raise Its Share in India's $500 Bn Pool of Govt Bonds Market Via ETFs

BlackRock Inc, the world's largest fund manager, is looking to increase its stake in India's government bond market. The company aims to raise their share in the country's $500 billion pool of fully investible government bonds through exchange-traded funds (ETFs). This move comes as these bonds, which are under the Fully Accessible Route (FAR) with no foreign investment limits, are set to be included in JPMorgan's emerging market debt index starting June. The inclusion has been attracting attention from foreign money managers.

BlackRock launched its India bond ETF in February and currently manages $26 million in this fund. The ETF offers the cheapest fee among peers and has a weighted average yield of 7.14%. BlackRock's expertise in navigating complex markets like India provides them with an edge, especially in areas such as trade execution and tax minimization.

The firm is bullish on India, citing the country's high economic growth, stable currency, and relatively higher yields compared to other BBB-rated countries. With the Indian economy's positive macroeconomic backdrop and the rupee's stability, BlackRock is optimistic about its investment prospects in India.

BlackRock has launched an India bond ETF, which is designed as a convenient way for foreign investors to gain exposure to Indian government bonds. It simplifies the investment process by eliminating the need to navigate through the complexities of setting up specific accounts, managing exchange rate considerations, procuring the bonds directly, and handling tax considerations.

The India bond ETF by BlackRock is an Irish-domiciled UCITS (Undertakings for Collective Investment in Transferable Securities), which means it's regulated under European Union laws that allow for the sale of funds across EU countries. The fund is available to investors in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia-Pacific region.

India's entry into global bond indices was discussed for nearly a decade but issues such as restrictions on foreign investors and local taxation delayed it.

In September 2023, JPMorgan had announced that it would include India in its emerging market bond index starting in June, where it will have a maximum weight of 10%. JPMorgan Chase & Co. has said it is on track to include India in its emerging market debt index from June.

In March this year, Bloomberg had announced that it will include India Fully Accessible Route (FAR) bonds in the Bloomberg Emerging Market (EM) Local Currency Government Index and related indices, to be phased in over a ten-month period, starting January 31, 2025.

The FTSE Russell is yet to include domestic bonds however.