What are “structured notes” issued by the World Bank?
Structured notes issued by the World Bank are debt securities that feature specific properties which match the needs of particular groups of investors. By introducing an element of return volatility, structured notes offer higher nominal coupons than non-structured, plain vanilla bonds. Structured notes can include one or more of the following properties: call and put options for the early redemption of principal prior to maturity; fixed coupons that step up or step down over the life of the security; dual currency features that provide for payment of coupon income and/or principal redemption in different currencies; foreign exchange options where the level of coupon income and/or principal redemption is dependent on the movement of foreign exchange rates over time; initial fixed rate coupons which are followed by floating rate coupons linked to a market interest rate such as LIBOR; and equity options where coupon income or principal redemption is a function of the performance of a pre
