Meet Federico, the Junior Analyst Who Helped Tackle Plastic Pollution through Outcome Bonds

Before we start, can you talk to us about your background?

Of course! I was born in Italy, where I studied economics and finance at Bocconi University. While I was still in college I applied to the World Bank Treasury Summer Internship, that gave me the amazing opportunity to come to D.C. as an intern over the summer. There, I had the chance to rotate across different teams and departments and develop an understanding of how the Treasury operates. After completing my studies, I received an offer to come back to World Bank as a Junior Analyst in the Structured Finance and Market Solutions Team (CMIMS) within the Capital Markets Department.

How did you become involved in the Plastic Waste Reduction Linked Bond?

My team has been really pushing the boundaries of development finance, we are constantly working on exciting new things for our clients and investors. The Plastic Waste Reduction Linked Bond is just the latest of our "outcome bonds", an investment vehicle designed to allow private investors to support specific sustainable development projects by linking their returns to the performance of the underlying projects. This structure mobilizes development capital to places that need it the most and transfers project risk to the market investors, rewarding them in case of success.

For this transaction, we issued a $100 million, 7-year bond to support the financing of two plastic recycling projects aimed at cutting plastic leakage into nature and oceans in vulnerable communities across Indonesia and Ghana. The structure requires bond investors to forego a part of their ordinary coupon, which is swapped for an upfront amount of about $14 million that is then invested in the projects to increase the capacity of recycling facilities, expand activities to new sites, and install food-grade recycling equipment. In exchange, investors stand to receive outcome-based payments linked to the sale of plastic and carbon credits that are generated by the two projects throughout the life of the bond.

Why was this meaningful to you?

Growing up in a small town along the Mediterranean, I have always felt strong connection with the sea. At the age of 12, I began playing water polo, a sport deeply rooted in local tradition that became a significant part of my life for nearly a decade. The demanding nature of the sport meant that whenever I wasn't at school I was either in the pool or at sea, practicing with the team. My desire to protect the waters where I grew up, as well as marine environments around the world, prompted my interest in fighting plastic pollution. Although most plastic waste originates on land, a large amount ends up in the seas and oceans, where it breaks down into microplastics and nanoplastics and ends up harming species, ecosystems, and human health. Working on this incredibly unique deal as my first transaction was a great opportunity to contribute to the cause while also deepening my understanding of plastic, carbon, and financial markets.

I am very proud of having participated in this bond particularly because of all the additional positive impacts that it will enable in the targeted areas, which go well beyond the obvious reduction in plastic pollution. Spending my childhood in a coastal town, where the economy revolved mainly around marine activities, I learned firsthand the importance of preserving marine ecosystems, both for our planet's health as well as for local communities. The livelihoods of many people who live near seas and oceans depends on activities such as fishing and tourism, which are severely threatened by plastic pollution. Stopping the leakage of plastic waste into the environment is therefore critical to ensure environmental sustainability as well as economic growth in both emerging and developed countries.

Could you talk more about the additional co-benefits of the bond?

In all our outcome bonds, we try to look very closely at the co-benefits associated with the projects, in alignment with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Bank's mandate. In this case, in addition to collecting and recycling more than 180,000 of plastic and abating over 100,000 tons of CO2e emissions, the projects are expected to improve health and sanitation in the local communities where the activities are being carried out, and they will provide employment opportunities for women microentrepreneurs who will be building their own plastic waste collection businesses.

In the long term, we hope this initiative will pave the way for broader efforts to mobilize private sector capital into the plastic recycling space and more generally towards all kinds of sustainable projects in emerging markets.

As a Junior Analyst, how did you contribute to the transaction?

As a Junior Analyst, I was involved in a multitude of tasks throughout the transaction process, from participating in early-stage calls with the project developer (Plastic Collective), to working on the financial structure behind the transaction and helping prepare communication and outreach materials post-issuance. I also had the amazing opportunity to join the World Bank delegation at INC4, the fourth session of the UN Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee on plastic pollution, where my colleague Fei Wang presented our transaction. Throughout the event, I was involved in various panels and discussions, and I had the chance to engage with project developers in the plastic recycling space to discuss the transaction and explore potential new ways to collaborate. It was inspiring to see so much enthusiasm around the World Bank's involvement in the area, and I really felt a lot of energy and dedication to finding new ways to tackle this issue.

What are some challenges you faced and how did you overcome them?

Starting my career in the Structured Finance and Market Solutions team was very challenging: I was immediately immersed into a number of different transactions, each with its own structure and underlying projects, ranging from conservation activities for endangered species in an African country to cutting-edge reforestation projects in Latin America. I initially felt overwhelmed as I tried to catch up with the many different stakeholders involved in existing deals, while also keeping track of the upcoming new ones. For this, I really have to thank my team, who provided me tremendous support throughout my time as an analyst, guiding me through the learning process, encouraging me to ask questions, and trusting me with the work. The tight-knit nature of the team was also helpful in keeping me integrated and involved throughout the work.

What will you take out of this experience?

There are many things that I will take away with me from this experience. Working with innovative markets like carbon and plastic credit markets has taught me how to be ambitious and creative in finding innovative solutions to solve financing challenges for different kinds of development initiatives. Participating in investor calls also taught me a lot about how investors in the impact financing space assess projects that align with sustainable development goals, reconciling financial objectives with impact metrics. Finally, seeing the catalytic effect that our transaction has had on companies in the plastic recycling space has also helped me appreciate the significance of the role of the World Bank as an innovator in the markets. Looking forward, I am very keen to keep working on new ways to use finance to create a positive impact in the world.

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