Published: October 15, 2019
The blossoming green finance market is only just taking root in the covered bond markets, but more banks are grasping the chance to follow the lead of their clients and refinance a bigger portion of their debt in ethical ways.
Societe Generale broke new ground in the green bond market in July when it issued France’s first covered green bond.
“The theme of positive impact is something that is recurrent at Societe Generale,” Jennifer Harrison, head of sustainability, investor relations at Societe Generale, told EMEA Finance, “whether it is linked to the transition to a lower carbon economy or the development of sustainable cities. It’s a natural evolution for the group to issue this covered bond, and in so doing creates a standard for the market.”
The French lender saw big demand for its debut green Obligations de Finance de l’Habitat, with €2.5bn of demand for the €1bn 10-year trade.