Sustainable Finance
#BondsLoans24 - How to build back better: Incorporating strong ESG credentials while making tough cost and investment decisions post COVID-19
Esther An (City Developments Limited), Virginie Maisonneuve (MGA Consulting), Hardik Shah (GMO), Leong See Meng (Cagamas) and Sadiq Currimbhoy (Maybank Kim Eng) discuss the pros and cons of dedicating resources to ESG credentials when rebuilding post-COVID-19
13 Jul 2020
#BondsLoans24 - How to price deals in the current market where there are no reference points?
Alfredo Mordezki (Santander Asset Management), Jack Deino (BlackRock), José Martínez Sanguinetti (Rimac Seguros), Alessia Falsarone (Pinebridge Investments), and Juan Sebastián Restrepo (Skandia) debate how to price LatAm credit deals when there are no benchmarks.
13 Jul 2020
#BondsLoans24 - Corona social bonds: How does the pandemic make a stronger business case for pursuing strategic ESG integration into funding strategies?
Rahul Sheth (Standard Chartered), Elena Chimonides (London Stock Exchange Group), Axel Bendiek (Ministry of Finance of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia), Farnam Bidgoli (HSBC), Giulia Pellegrini (Allianz Global Investors) discuss the long term prospects of Corona social bonds and pursuing ESG integration into funding
8 Jul 2020
Non-Financial Corporates Overtake FIs as Largest Green Bond Issuers in China, CBI Data Shows
The volume of green bonds issued from China domestically and offshore rose 33% year on year to USD55.8bn in 2019, with the issuer base diversifying to see a greater share of non-financial corporates taking the plunge into the asset class.
1 Jul 2020
Moody’s: Coronavirus to Sharpen Focus on Credit-Relevant ESG Factors
The coronavirus pandemic is likely only to intensify focus on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors as investors scrutinise governments’ and companies’ preparedness for global risks including and beyond public health emergencies, Moody’s analysts say.
24 Jun 2020
Korean State-Owned Lender Raises USD500mn in COVID-19 Response Social Bonds
Industrial Bank of Korea (IBK) took to the markets this week to raise USD500mn in social bonds, with the proceeds targeted at funding COVID-19 response measures.
16 Jun 2020
Brazil’s Infrastructure Ministry Launches Region’s First Green Bond Rail Funding Programme
Brazil’s Ministry of Infrastructure has launched a green bond programme that will see the proceeds used to finance transport projects throughout the country, a first for the region.
11 Jun 2020
Social Risk Remains the Most Difficult Aspect of ESG to Price
Social risk is an understudied and underappreciated facet of the ESG umbrella. As an expansive concept, it can be pivotal in credit performance, particularly in emerging markets and especially during these challenging times. But why does pricing social risk remain so elusive?
4 Jun 2020
Intellidex: South Africa Should Issue a Social Bond to Finance Pandemic Support
South Africa should explore the possibility of issuing a social bond to help finance programmes aimed at countering the impact of COVID-19, according to a recent paper published by a group of economists.
28 May 2020
BlackRock: Financial Performance Link to Sustainability in Times of Crisis is About People
ESG-tilted portfolios and assets have outperformed their non-sustainable counterparts through much of the recent market turbulence, according to MSCI and other index and data providers. In a recent paper, BlackRock says a positive correlation between ESG and performance appears strongest for firms that prioritise people.
26 May 2020
Sustainable Bond Issuance Falls, But Social Bonds on the Rise – Moody’s
Total volumes of sustainable bond issuance are set to fall as the COVID-19 pandemic creates a rocky environment for borrowers, according to Matthew Kuchtyak, AVP-Analyst at Moody’s. Sustainable bond issuance is likely to total USD325bn this year, a downward revision of USD75bn from the USD400bn forecast previously.
11 May 2020
UN PRI Seeing Mexico, Chile and Other LAC Governments’ Bolstering Commitments to Sustainable Investing
The UN Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) is a global initiative that promotes responsible investment. Bonds & Loans spoke to Eduardo Atehortua, the Director of PRI for Latin America, about promoting sustainable investing among the region’s governments, the challenges associated with the “social” part of ESG in Latin America, and whether ESG-linked securities will prove to be among the…
23 Apr 2020
Is It Time for Asset Allocators to Address Climate Risk as Investment Risk?
While world governments take action to mitigate a climate catastrophe, asset managers should start abandoning investment models that treat climate-related risk as something tangential or exogenous to investment risk.
21 Apr 2020
ASEAN Green Bond Issuance Jumped 50% in 2019
Across ASEAN, 2019 was a big year for green bonds with issuance rising over 50% to reach a total of USD258bn, according to a report from HSBC and the Climate Bonds Initiative (CBI). But clear disparities remain between countries, with Singapore increasingly dominating the issuance pipeline.
17 Apr 2020