Do Schneider Electric's sustainability-linked bonds presage an adversarial relationship between investors and companies?

November 25, 2020 | Case Study

Schneider Electric just launched what it claims is a first-of-its-kind sustainable share-convertible bond. Unlike previous green bonds, in which funds have been earmarked for sustainable efforts, Schneider Electric's bonds don't have any restrictions on how the funds will be spent. Instead, the company has agreed to pay out a fee to investors if it fails to reach a set of sustainability goals. This is reminiscent of sustainability-linked loans given to Kemira and a few other major chemical companies, although those were between specific organizations.