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Report on EU Green Bond Standard; Green Bonds Issuance Reaches $100 Billion 1H 2019

EU Green Bond Standard, if implemented, will raise the bar on standards and may increase cost of issuance On June 18, 2019, the Technical Expert Group on Sustainable Finance (TEG) of the European Commission published its Report on EU Green Bond Standard. The report proposes that the Commission create a voluntary, non-legislative EU Green Bond […]

Citigroup is latest US top bank to issue green bonds

Citigroup issues €1 billion three-year fixed-rate green note Last week Citigroup, whose senior debt is rated Baa1/BBB+, became the latest in a string of large US banks operating in the US to issue a green bond. Citigroup is the fourth bank among the top 10 ranked financial institutions to issue a green bond, having been […]

1H 2017 Green Bond Issuance in the U.S. Led by Tax-Exempt Transactions

In the first six months of the year through June 30, 2017, 29 U.S. entities issued an equivalent number of taxable and tax-free green bonds valued at about $8.0 billion. This is roughly in line with U.S. issuance during the first 6 months of 2016. Worldwide volume, on the other hand, reached $49.1 billion so […]

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Research and analysis to keep sustainable investors up to-date on a broad range of topics that include trends and developments in sustainable investing and sustainable finance, regulatory updates, performance results and considerations, investing through index funds and actively managed portfolios, asset allocation updates, expenses, ESG ratings and data, company and product news, green, social and sustainable bonds, green bond funds as well as reporting and disclosure practices, to name just a few.

A continuously updated Funds Directory is also available to investors.  This is intended to become a comprehensive listing of sustainable mutual funds, ETFs and other investment products along with a description of their sustainable investing approaches as set out in fund prospectuses and related regulatory filings.

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Many questions have surfaced in recent years regarding sustainable and ESG investing.  Here, investors and financial intermediaries will find materials that describe the various approaches to sustainable investing and their implementation.  While sustainable investing approaches vary and they have thus far defied universally accepted definitions, many practitioners agree that they fall into the following broad categories:  Values-based investing, investing via exclusions, impact investing, thematic investments and ESG integration.  In conjunction with each of these approaches, investors may also adopt various issuer engagement procedures and proxy voting practices.  That said, sustainable investing approaches will continue to evolve.

In addition to periodic updates regarding sustainable investing and how this form of investing is evolving, investors and financial intermediaries interested in implementing a sustainable investing approach will also find source materials that cover basic investing themes as well as asset allocation tactics.

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Thoughts and ideas targeting sustainable investing strategies executed through various registered and non-registered sustainable investment funds and products such as mutual funds, Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs), Exchange Traded Notes (ETNs), closed-end funds, Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) and Unit Investment Trusts (UITs). Coverage extends to investment management firms as well as fund groups. 

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