Given the emergence of the sustainability/KPI-linked bond, will the industry do away with the original use-of-proceeds model? Or can these two models co-exist?
This was the question posed to a panel at Environmental Finance's ESG in Fixed Income Europe 2020 virtual conference.
The question stimulated a lively debate on the use of proceeds model adopted by most green bonds. It was suggested by 2 Degrees Investing Initiative's Jakob Thomae that the model is susceptible to 'greenwashing'. In response, Zurich's Johanna Köb said it is the duty of investors to make up their minds about the credibility of the issue.
A clip of the panel can be viewed below. The full panel discussion and the other discussions from the event are still available to view on the events platform.
Moderator: Tanguy Claquin, Head of Sustainable Banking, Crédit Agricole CIB
Panellists: Ben Caldecott, Director, Oxford Sustainable Finance Programme and Associate Professor, Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment, University of Oxford
Eusebio Garre, Head of Funding, IDB Invest
Jakob Thomae, Managing Director, Germany, 2 Degrees Investing Initiative
Jens Hellerup, Senior Director, Head of Funding and Investor Relations, Nordic Investment Bank
Johanna Köb, Head of Responsible Investment, Zurich Insurance Company