(Bloomberg) -- MetLife Inc., the largest U.S. life insurer, is issuing green bonds for the first time, adding to a surge of issuance of the debt from the financial sector.

The New York-based company is selling debt to fund environmentally-friendly projects through its Metropolitan Life Global Funding I entity, according to a person with knowledge of the matter. The offering may yield 0.9 percentage points above Treasuries, said the person, who asked not to be identified as the details are private.

The funds raised will be used to purchase a funding agreement from Metropolitan Life Insurance Co., which intends to put proceeds from that sale toward green initiatives such as affordable housing, infrastructure, municipal and impact investments, according to Metlife’s sustainable financing framework.

Financials globally have raised about $26 billion to fund environmentally-friendly projects in 2020, making the sector the biggest issuer of green bonds after sovereigns, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The sector borrowed a record $75.9 billion last year.

Bank of America Corp., HSBC Holdings Plc, JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Morgan Stanley are managing the bond sale, the person said.

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