Washington, DC, November 20, 2007 – Today, the World Bank (International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, rated Aaa/AAA) issued its first global benchmark bond denominated in Canadian dollars (“CAD”). The CAD 850 million bond is a syndicated transaction lead managed by HSBC and TD Securities. Senior co-lead managers are Merrill Lynch and RBC Capital Markets, and co-lead managers are BMO Capital Markets, CIBC World Markets, Casgrain & Co, National Bank Financial, and Scotia Capital.

The 5-year bond, due December 15, 2012, pays a coupon of 4.30% and was priced today at 99.899%, which results in a spread of 49.5 basis points over the 3.75% Canadian Government Bond due June 2012. The CAD 850 million sized transaction matches the largest CAD bond offered at one time by a supranational or international agency.

The bond was launched with a size of CAD 500 million, and investor interest quickly exceeded CAD 1.1 billion. Based on the high quality of the order book, the bond’s size was increased to CAD 850 million. The final order book consisted of 33 orders ranging in size from CAD 1 million to CAD 160 million, with 69% of the orders originating from Canadian domestic investors.

This inaugural CAD global bond represents a further extension of the World Bank’s strategy of providing domestic and international investors a variety of liquid global World Bank bonds in markets around the world. The World Bank has previously offered benchmark bonds in the global format it pioneered in 1989, in US dollars, Euros, Mexican pesos, New Zealand dollars, Polish zloty, South African rand, and Turkish lira.

Amount: CAD 850 million
Settlement date: November 30, 2007
Maturity Date: December 15, 2012
Issue / Re-offer price: 99.899%
Coupon: 4.30% paid semi-annually
Denomination: CAD 1,000 and multiples thereof
Listing: Luxembourg
Clearing systems: CDS, Clearstream, and Euroclear
ISIN: CA459058AA17

“We've had the strategic desire to issue a global bond in Canadian dollars for some time. We received very positive feedback directly from investors we met during a series of conferences and meetings earlier this year, and this reinforced our interest. The strong investor demand for our inaugural CAD global bond enabled us to issue, in one go, one of the largest bonds in our peer group. We are delighted to add another currency and market where both domestic and international investors can invest in a liquid World Bank global bond.” said Doris Herrera-Pol, Director, Capital Markets Department, World Bank Treasury.

“This was the largest supra global deal of the year, printed in the toughest market conditions of the year. The book would have supported a larger transaction but the issuer was looking for a deal that would set the stage for further issuance in this important market.“ said Bob Buttke, Head of Debt Syndication, HSBC Securities (Canada) Inc.

“The combination of extensive investor demand for a high quality credit due to the continued global market volatility and the vast recognition of the IBRD name, created a unique window for IBRD’s inaugural CAD transaction. The strong global interest resulted in an extremely successful transaction, against a very turbulent market backdrop, which satisfied both investor needs and IBRD’s high standards.” said Maribel Cabrera, Director, Global Debt Capital Markets, TD Securities.

The World Bank's bond products and investor presentation can be accessed through the website of the World Bank for bond investors (www.worldbank.org/debtsecurities). For a list of selected bonds issued recently by the World Bank, see: http://treasury.worldbank.org/recentissues.

About the World Bank

The World Bank is a global development cooperative owned by 185 member countries. Its purpose is to help its members achieve equitable and sustainable economic growth in their national economies and find effective solutions to pressing regional and global problems in economic development and environmental sustainability, all with a view to overcoming poverty and improving standards of living for people worldwide.

To fulfill its mandate, the World Bank Group, working through four specialized entities, provides its members with financial services, access to experts and a pool of knowledge in development-related disciplines as well as convening and strategic services to help members pool, administer and prioritize resources they dedicate to development-related objectives.

The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), rated Aaa/AAA, is the oldest and largest entity in the World Bank Group and provides funding, risk management tools and credit enhancement to sovereigns. To fund this activity, IBRD has been issuing debt securities in the international capital markets for 60 years. The World Bank’s mission to fight poverty and its investments in sustainable development, including in education, health and environment, make IBRD bonds suitable for socially responsible investors. The World Bank is also the Treasury Manager for the International Finance Facility for Immunisation (IFFIm), the world’s first multilateral issuer that provides grants for a specific development purpose – health and immunization programs.

The World Bank has gained recognition as one of the market’s most innovative borrowers. It pioneered the currency swap in 1981, the first global bond (1989) and the first fully electronic bond offering (2000), among other “firsts.” It was IFR’s “Borrower of the Decade” for the 1980s and recognized by bankers in a recent EuroWeek poll as “Most Innovative Borrower over the last 20 years.”

In 2007 the World Bank raised US$11 billion in medium- to long-term funding. The World Bank’s debt products are offered in a variety of currencies and include large bonds distributed globally as well as bonds tailored to retail or institutional investors in specific markets. World Bank debt products provide investors with the assurance of a superior credit rating, a wide choice of products and strong secondary market performance for liquid World Bank global bonds. The World Bank also customizes its debt offerings to meet investors' specific asset and liability needs.

For more information, see www.worldbank.org/debtsecurities