Sustainability Language

Standards & schemes · Meta-framework

ICMA Green/Social/Sustainability Bond Principles

International Capital Market Association

01

What is it?

Meta-framework issued or operated by International Capital Market Association.

Regulatory recognitionDe facto market standard; external-review practice feeds EU GBS compliance

02

Which version is current?

Profile version 2. Official information last verified 24 August 2026.

03

Who and what does it cover?

Geography
Global
Sectors
Debt capital markets
Scope
Instrument (bond)
04

What does it require?

Voluntary process guidelines for labelled bonds — use of proceeds, project evaluation, management of proceeds, reporting — plus the Sustainability-Linked Bond Principles for KPI-linked instruments.

What it does not demonstrateThe framework provides principles or alignment guidance; it does not by itself certify performance or establish legal compliance.

05

How is conformity assessed?

External review recommended (second-party opinion, verification, certification, rating)

Grievance mechanism—

06

Who makes the decision?

International Capital Market Association

Assurance arrangementExternal review recommended (second-party opinion, verification, certification, rating)

07

Chain of custody

Not specified in this profile

ISEAL membership—

08

Conditional relationships

Claims it may support

A relationship does not mean that the standard proves or validates every use of a claim.

Green bondProvides evidence for · Alignment with the framework is relevant evidence; frameworks define process, not outcomes — claim wording must not imply certification.see standards.last_verifiedSustainability-linked bond — ambitious SPTsProvides evidence for · Alignment with the framework is relevant evidence; frameworks define process, not outcomes — claim wording must not imply certification.see standards.last_verified
09

Legal context

Laws referencing it

EU Green Bond StandardEU · Referenced by law · Editor to confirm the provision and purpose of the reference.
10

Dictionary

Dictionary concepts

No reviewed dictionary cross-link is published.

11

Version record

What has changed

  1. Version 2Initial profile published after recorded site-owner/editor review of the complete standards batch.
  2. Version 1Initial private editorial draft imported from the reviewed standards handover.
12

Challenge or improve

Have evidence, context or a correction?

Every suggestion is checked by an editor before it changes this profile.

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Last verified 24 August 2026. This neutral profile is informational and does not recommend, rank or endorse the standard.