Exploring sustainability linked bonds and their potential to drive climate change action. Discussion on the purpose and perception of SLBs, the intricacies of bond issuance, and legal loopholes in bond documents. Delving into the rarity of bond call options and make-hole provisions. Exploring the challenges of proving beneficial ownership in legal cases.
Sovereign sustainability linked bonds serve as instruments for issuers to demonstrate their commitment to the environment and sustainable growth, showcasing their objectives and setting targets.
Designing ambitious and relevant targets for sustainability linked bonds is crucial to maintain credibility and market interest, while ensuring achievability.
Deep dives
Introduction and Guest Introduction
The podcast episode begins by acknowledging the return of the podcast after a break. The guest, Ignacio Lagos, a partner at Cleary Gottlieb, is introduced as an expert in sustainability linked bonds (SLBs) in the sovereign space. His role as a pioneer in introducing SLBs is highlighted, and he is welcomed to the podcast.
Understanding the Purpose of SLBs
The podcast explores the question of whether SLBs are meant to drive a transition towards a greener economy or if they are merely vanilla bonds with a small probability of paying a higher coupon. Ignacio Lagos explains that SLBs serve as instruments for issuers to demonstrate their commitment to the environment and sustainable growth. The bonds allow issuers to showcase their objectives, set targets, and commit to meeting them. However, the primary motivation for issuing SLBs is to show the market their dedication rather than financial advantages.
Balancing Ambition and Achievement in SLBs
The podcast discusses the dual nature of SLBs in terms of providing ambitious targets while ensuring achievability. Ignacio Lagos explains that when designing SLBs, the targets must be ambitious, relevant, and core to the issuer's overall business. The selection of key performance indicators (KPIs) is often aligned with existing commitments from international agreements like the Paris Agreement. The significance of designing targets that are challenging yet attainable is emphasized to maintain credibility and market interest.
Evaluation of SLBs and Legal Considerations
The podcast touches on criticisms and legal loopholes associated with SLBs. It highlights concerns about the potential for issuers to call the bonds early, avoiding penalty payments, and questions the effectiveness of these instruments in driving a transition to a greener economy. However, Ignacio Lagos mentions that such practices are not common and are usually associated with non-investment grade issuers. He emphasizes that SLBs are generally priced similarly to plain vanilla bonds and outlines the relatively firm legal structure that underpins SLBs.
Sovereign Sustainability Linked Bonds: What’s Going On?
The newest product on the sovereign scene is the sustainability linked bond. The product is potentially exciting because, on its face, it seems to remedy some of the incentive problems embedded in the more commonly used “use of proceeds” green bonds. Chile and Uruguay have issued slbs with considerable fanfare. But these are two strong issuers with robust commitments to climate change. The question we are interested in is whether these instruments are providing issuers with incentives to do more for climate change than they would otherwise do. Our guest, Ignacio Lagos, of Cleary Gottlieb, is one of the young stars of the sovereign debt field and talks to us about these deals. And since we had Ignacio with us, we seized the opportunity to also try to understand a bit more about the intriguing Hamilton Bank v. Sri Lanka case and that Registered Holder/Beneficial Owner stuff.
Producer: Leanna Doty
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