OECD issued the Guidelines for Corporate Bond Issuers

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) issued the new Guidelines for Corporate Bond Issuers. The document sets out guiding principles for the development of a transparent and efficient corporate debt market, investor protection, and the improvement of corporate governance.

These Guidelines complement the G20/OECD Principles of Corporate Governance and focus specifically on the characteristics of the corporate bond market. They are intended to help governments and regulators improve the legal, regulatory, and institutional frameworks for issuers and bondholders. The document is advisory in nature and does not replace national legislation.

The OECD identifies three key areas: transparency and disclosure by issuers, accountability of corporate governance bodies, and the effective exercise of bondholders’ rights. Specifically, these include the timely disclosure of financial information and risks, oversight of capital structure, issuer engagement with investors, holding bondholder meetings, and debt restructuring mechanisms.

For Ukraine, these approaches are particularly relevant in the context of developing the corporate bond market as one of the tools businesses can use to raise capital through capital markets. They serve as an international benchmark for building a market where companies gain additional opportunities to raise capital, and investors receive an adequate level of information and mechanisms to protect their rights.

The Guidelines were prepared by the OECD Committee on Corporate Governance following more than two years of work and were adopted on 20 April 2026.