2 World Bank Philippines Catastrophe Bonds get listed on SGX

The cat bonds will fund $307m of protection against earthquakes in the Philippines.

Two World Bank Philippines Catastrophe Bonds (cat bonds) got listed in the Singapore Exchange (SGX) on 25 November which finances up to $307m of financial protection against earthquakes and tropical cyclones for the Republic of the Philippines over the next three years, SGX announced.

The cat bonds which are also supported by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), mark a number of debuts as the first World Bank bond listed on SGX, the first one listed on an Asian exchange, and the first cat bond ever to be sponsored by an Asian sovereign.

The World Bank first entered the catastrophe bond market in 2009 advising a sovereign client to address the financial impact of earthquakes and hurricanes. Since then, the World Bank has provided almost $6.14b in insurance coverage including the cat bond issuance for the Philippines.