Gide Loyrette Nouel and Clifford Chance have advised on the syndicated issuance of €1 billion ($1.1 billion) in bonds by the Council of Europe Development Bank to help European countries respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, Gide said in a statement.

The COVID-19 Response Social Inclusion Bonds carry an interest rate of 0% and are due in 2027. They were issued within the development bank's Social Inclusion Bond framework, which supports new or existing social projects in 41 member countries in Europe.

The framework is being adapted so that financing from the COVID-19 bonds can be extended to the health sector, where countries have increased needs because of the pandemic, the bank said in a statement.

The proceeds raised will also support micro, small and medium-sized enterprises in order to create and preserve jobs, in line with the development bank's traditional mission.

This is the fourth social bond issued by the bank since 2017, and its largest-ever, the bank said in a statement.

"In these exceptionally difficult circumstances, we are pleased that the successful launch of the COVID-19 Response Social Inclusion Bond will support the needs of European countries severely affected by the COVID-19 outbreak and its consequences," the bank's governor, Rolf Wenzel, said in a statement.

"The CEB is stepping up efforts to provide maximum support to its members during the crisis and to help them tackle challenges in the period following the outbreak," he added.

Gide advised the Council of Europe Development Bank with a team out of Paris led by banking and finance partner Hubert du Vignaux, working with associate Lou Recht.

A Clifford Chance team out of London advised the banking syndicate, composed of Citigroup Global Markets Ltd., Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank, DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral-Genossenschaftsbank, Frankfurt am Main, and HSBC Bank PLC.