What is the point of green bonds?
A new study finds little evidence that they directly cut carbon or lower costs
GREEN BONDS are the stars of climate finance. These instruments, which channel funds raised towards environmentally friendly projects, raised $271bn in 2019, according to BloombergNEF, a consultancy. That is only about 4% of total bond issuance worldwide, but it easily makes green bonds the most popular form of eco-friendly debt. Covid-19 has only slightly slowed the rise. On September 2nd Germany issued green paper for the first time. The European Commission is mulling using them to fund just under a third of its €750bn ($888bn) stimulus package.
This article appeared in the Finance & economics section of the print edition under the headline “The meaning of green”
Finance & economics September 19th 2020
- Is the world economy recovering?
- What is fuelling China’s economic recovery?
- How would Joe Biden change America’s trade policy?
- What is the point of green bonds?
- How many of America’s top companies have a female CEO?
- Who will buy Borsa Italiana?
- Can you make money from the Big Mac index?
- How does today’s tech boom compare with the dotcom era?
From the September 19th 2020 edition
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