Covered Bonds
February 12, 2025
Zero-coupon bonds are those bonds that are sold at a deep discount to their face value. This means that these bonds do not receive any periodic interest. Instead, the investors have to invest a lump sum amount at the beginning of their investment and get paid a higher lumpsum amount at the end of their […]
Financial strategy is at the heart of the business of any insurance company. This is because insurance companies need to deploy their funds in a manner which allows them to gain maximum returns. However, the nature of claims being faced by insurance companies is uncertain. As a result, every insurance company is supposed to have […]
From the previous articles, we already know that money markets form an integral part of the overall financial system. Also because of their large volumes and high ratio of demand deposits, the money market funds are always at the risk of a run. It is for this reason that the Securities and Exchange Commission has […]
As discussed in the previous article, capital rationing is a form of capital budgeting. In capital rationing we change the unlimited capital assumption of capital budgeting and we try to choose projects with the finite capital that we have on hand. This finite capital may be in the form of capital that the firm already […]
In the previous article, we have already understood what Jock Taxes are. We also had a closer look at the reason why states levy jock taxes. However, there are many experts who believe that levying jock taxes is counterproductive. This is because of the fact that there are more disadvantages associated with jock taxes as […]
Finance and sustainable business practices have traditionally been considered to be separate fields. It was common for companies all over the world to participate in activism related to sustainable business practices. However, this activism was more a part of their social responsibility and would not have any impact on their bottom line. This has changed with the advent of sustainable bonds.
Sustainable bonds are a mechanism to combine the social responsibility as well as the financial structure of the company to form one integrated strategy. When the idea of sustainable bonds was first introduced to the market, it was considered to be a fad. However, with the passage of time, green bonds have become quite a rage. Today almost all major multinational companies such as Apple, Pepsi, etc. have issued sustainable bonds.
The largest financial institutions of the world such as JP Morgan Chase as well as Citibank have also been involved in the issuance of sustainable bonds. Also, important governments such as the United States and China have shown an inclination towards the issuance of such bonds. Many experts who keenly observe the areas of bond issuance and track the latest developments have concluded that, in the near future, almost 5% of the bonds which will be issued will be sustainable bonds.
Hence, it is important for every investor to understand what these bonds are and how they impact the overall markets for bond issuance.
The word sustainable-bonds is composed of two different words i.e. sustainable as well as bonds. The word sustainable is used to refer to the overall impact of the investment whereas bonds are the commonly used means of debt financing. Simply put, sustainable bonds are a specialized type of bond, wherein the issuer makes a voluntary pledge to use the proceeds realized from the bonds issue in projects which do not have a negative impact on society. This means that along with being financially viable, the projects also have to be environmentally and socially viable.
It is important to understand that sustainable bonds do overlap the areas of green bonds and social bonds. However, sustainable bonds are a wider concept.
Investors who regularly invest in fixed income securities routinely come across terms such as green bonds, social bonds as well as sustainability bonds. These terms seem quite similar. However, it is important to understand the difference between these terms.
Green bonds are meant exclusively for environmental issues. On the other hand, social bonds are meant exclusively for issues that impact the social construct of society. Sustainability bonds can be considered to be hybrid bonds. This means that the objectives of both green bonds, as well as sustainable bonds, can be considered when the proceeds from sustainability bonds are being utilized. This is what makes sustainable bonds more popular. It is easier for issuers to justify the use of the proceeds in the event of an audit. Since issuers have more flexibility, these types of bonds are becoming more popular with the passage of time.
There are several advantages that make sustainable bonds an important source of financing. Some of these advantages have been written below:
The bottom line is that sustainable debt is here to stay. Companies, investors, as well as financial institutions, need to adjust their investment strategies in order to account for the increasing number of sustainable bonds being issued in the market.
Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *