What is the difference between green bonds and blue bonds?
Blue bonds are a subset of green bonds, those used specifically to finance projects related to ocean conservation. This includes managing plastic waste, but also promoting marine biodiversity by ensuring sustainable, clean and ecologically-friendly developments.
Projects eligible for green bond financing may include all eligible renewable energy projects, and projects eligible for blue bond financing may only include renewable energy projects that focus on marine and offshore renewable energy.
The main difference between green bonds and traditional bonds is that the issuer publicly states how it will use the proceeds to fund sustainable projects, allowing the bond to be marketed to investors as green.
- Water supply.
- Water sanitation.
- Ocean-friendly and water-friendly products.
- Ocean-friendly chemicals and plastic related sectors.
- Sustainable shipping and port logistics sectors.
Many studies compare the yields on green bonds with those on conventional (brown) bonds and find that green bonds sell at a premium from the issuer's point of view (offer a greenium) at the time of their issuance (Baker et al., 2018; Fatica et al., 2021; Gianfrate & Peri, 2019; Kapraun et al., 2021; MacAskill et al., ...
Blue bonds work in the same way than traditional bonds but are different in that the entities issuing them are determined to use the resources generated – or a large proportion thereof – for the protection and conservation of marine ecosystems.
Green bonds are a type of debt issued by public or private institutions to finance themselves and, unlike other credit instruments, they commit the use of the funds obtained to an environmental project or one related to climate change.
Additionally, they demonstrate a strong safe haven property with high-emission sectors for the entire study period and with all sectors except financials during the COVID-19 period. This hedging and safe haven benefit of green bonds is agnostic of the environmental disclosure score of a firm.
Green bonds are more susceptible to geopolitical risk in times of high volatility. Corporate and sovereign bonds less vulnerable to geopolitical risk than green bonds.
Green bonds may offer tax advantages, providing incentives for investing in sustainable projects that do not apply to comparable types of bonds. Investors seeking assets that align with their environmental values should be sure to verify the claims of sustainability made by bond issuers.
What are the cons of blue bonds?
- Sustainability Challenges. One of the primary challenges of blue bonds is ensuring the long-term sustainability of the financed projects. ...
- Dependency on Beneficiaries and Polluters. ...
- Complex Funding Models.
For example, the Seychelles' first blue bond includes a commitment to report annually on the use of funds and the impact of the projects. It was structured in accordance with the International Capital Markets Association's (ICMA) green bond principles and certified by the climate bonds initiative.
Rank | Fund | Yield |
---|---|---|
1 | Vanguard High-Yield Corporate Fund Investor Shares (VWEHX) | 6.40% |
2 | T. Rowe Price High Yield Fund (PRHYX) | 7.02% |
3 | PGIM High Yield Fund Class A (PBHAX) | 7.22% |
4 | Fidelity Capital & Income Fund (fa*gIX) | 6.16% |
Green bonds can help investors put their money where their values are. Much like investing in environmental, social and governance, or ESG, investments, green bonds have a mission built into the investment itself. Green bonds can also have tax incentives in the form of tax exemption and tax credits.
If you are conscious about the environment and looking to save for the future then you can buy Green Savings Bonds from National Savings & Investment (NS&I). NS&I is backed by the Treasury, so your money is fully protected if things go wrong.
Empirical results show that portfolios with green bonds outperform portfolios with conventional bonds in terms of risk-adjusted returns in the majority of cases in both markets. The benefit of green bonds comes from both the increase in the return and the decrease in the volatility for most of the cases.
The agreement underlying a blue bond requires two types of promises. First, the borrower becomes obliged to pay back the capital with an interest in a certain period. The second promise is what gives the agreement its color: positive impact on the marine environment.
Blue finance is a new segment of green finance that channels investments to water-related projects. Water is increasingly often identified as a leading environmental, social and governance theme and represents an investment opportunity for corporates and investors.
Savings bonds that are electronic can be bought for as little as $25 or any amount up to $5000 and held in a secure TreasuryDirect® account. Since January 1, 2012, paper savings bonds are no longer available at banks or other financial institutions.
Who buys Green Bonds? Green Bond purchasers are typically institutional investors, often with either an ESG (environment, social and governance) mandate or an environmental focus.
What are green bond rules?
The Green Bond Principles are voluntary process guidelines that neither constitute an offer to purchase or sell securities nor constitute specific advice of whatever form (tax, legal, environmental, accounting or regulatory) in respect of Green Bonds or any other securities.
Greenwashing – making false or misleading claims about the green credentials of a company or financial product – is a major challenge for the market in green bonds and other sustainable investments. Regulators and the industry itself are working hard to address this issue.
Green bonds are intended to encourage sustainable activities by financing climate-related or environmentally friendly projects.
Treasuries are considered the safest bonds available because they are backed by the “full faith and credit” of the U.S. government.
High-yield or junk bonds typically carry the highest risk among all types of bonds. These bonds are issued by companies or entities with lower credit ratings or creditworthiness, making them more prone to default.
References
- https://finance.yahoo.com/news/top-20-countries-owe-us-175515001.html
- https://www.fool.com/investing/2023/08/12/heres-1-investment-billionaires-warren-buffett-elo/
- https://www.investopedia.com/articles/bonds/the-risks-of-sovereign-bonds.asp
- https://www.adb.org/news/infographics/adb-investments-gender-bonds
- https://www.marketplace.org/2023/05/26/who-does-the-u-s-owe-31-4-trillion/
- https://www.investopedia.com/articles/investing/040115/reasons-why-china-buys-us-treasury-bonds.asp
- https://www.investopedia.com/terms/g/green-bond.asp
- https://www.fool.com/investing/how-to-invest/bonds/best-bonds/
- https://www.treasurydirect.gov/savings-bonds/
- https://www.man.com/maninstitute/blue-bonds-sustainable-debt
- https://www.wintwealth.com/blog/what-are-the-risks-of-bonds/
- https://tapinvest.in/blog/indian-bond-market
- https://time.com/personal-finance/article/savings-bonds-guide/
- https://www.wsj.com/livecoverage/stock-market-today-dow-jones-03-07-2024/card/egypt-s-bonds-are-soaring-in-2024-mLJBFNBLtoWiqhuYgCsz
- https://usafacts.org/articles/which-countries-own-the-most-us-debt/
- https://www.marketplace.org/2023/11/07/why-is-china-selling-off-its-us-debt-treasurys/
- https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2023/11/what-are-green-bonds-climate-change/
- https://asianbondsonline.adb.org/china/market_summary/cn_market_summary_202211.pdf
- https://www.shrm.org/topics-tools/news/inclusion-equity-diversity/viewpoint-the-double-bind-for-women-being-a-razor-blade-and-a-cupcake
- https://www.treasurydirect.gov/kids/work/work_wallst.htm
- https://www.sifma.org/resources/research/us-fixed-income-securities-statistics/
- https://www.quora.com/Did-BRICSs-New-Development-Bank-make-many-successful-projects-for-its-members-since-its-creation-What-are-its-accomplishments
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NDB_Bank
- https://www.rabobank.com/knowledge/d011423183-blue-finance-closing-the-water-financing-gap
- https://betterbuildingssolutioncenter.energy.gov/financing-navigator/option/green-bonds
- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1544612322005335
- https://www.adb.org/multimedia/journey-development-money/
- https://www.investopedia.com/terms/a/asian-development-bank.asp
- https://gnhre.org/?p=16912
- https://www.schwab.com/learn/story/why-to-consider-longer-term-bonds-now
- https://www.barrons.com/articles/warren-buffett-berkshire-hathaway-bonds-stocks-3f3058b6
- https://money.usnews.com/investing/articles/best-bond-etfs-to-buy-now
- https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2023/04/ranked-the-largest-bond-markets-in-the-world/
- https://www.fidelity.lu/investment-themes/investing-in-asia
- https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/issues1/
- https://www.vedantu.com/question-answer/which-is-the-weakest-among-the-following-types-class-11-chemistry-cbse-605b69a1e62203171f7d0e43
- https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/does-warren-buffett-invest-in-bonds
- https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/06/keyplayersbondmarket.asp
- https://www.santander.com/en/stories/blue-bonds
- https://www.investopedia.com/articles/bonds/11/5-reasons-to-trade-bonds.asp
- https://www.investopedia.com/terms/w/william-h-gross.asp
- https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3259463/china-unloads-more-us-treasury-bills-odds-fed-rate-cuts-grow-slim
- https://www.invesco.com/apac/en/institutional/insights/fixed-income/fixed-income-outlook-update.html
- https://www.portlandoregon.gov/article/730061
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bond_market
- http://www.gogreenbonds.org/faqs/
- https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/investing/treasury-bond
- https://www.treasurydirect.gov/marketable-securities/buying-a-marketable-security/
- https://investor.vanguard.com/investor-resources-education/understanding-investment-types/what-is-a-bond
- https://www.statista.com/statistics/1268337/sustainable-bond-issuance-worldwide-category-country/
- https://www.iberdrola.com/sustainability/investments-green-bonds
- https://www.investopedia.com/terms/d/dirtyprice.asp
- https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-fmcc-boundless-worldhistory/chapter/east-asia-in-the-21st-century/
- https://www.quora.com/If-China-sells-all-US-treasury-bonds-what-will-happen-to-the-US-economy
- https://www.adb.org/sites/default/files/publication/731026/adb-green-blue-bond-framework.pdf
- https://www.quora.com/Is-the-Forex-market-larger-than-the-bond-market-in-terms-of-market-cap
- https://corporatefinanceinstitute.com/resources/esg/green-bond/
- https://www.investopedia.com/articles/markets-economy/090616/5-countries-own-most-us-debt.asp
- https://markets.ft.com/data/equities/tearsheet/profile?s=NDB.N0000:CSE
- https://www.nomuragreentech.com/insights/blue-bonds-a-blueprint-for-ocean-conservation
- https://www.adb.org/sites/default/files/publication/156155/adbi-wp300.pdf
- https://www.ndb.int/about-ndb/history/
- https://www.lpl.com/newsroom/read/weekly-market-commentary-who-is-buying-treasury-securities-and-why-it-matters.html
- https://www.wsj.com/finance/the-worlds-largest-buyer-of-u-s-debt-isnt-going-away-3b70afd3
- https://cbonds.com/glossary/gender-bond/
- https://www.adb.org/who-we-are/organization
- https://www.fsdafrica.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Scoping-study-Gender-bonds-summary-22.07.20.pdf
- https://www.chegg.com/homework-help/questions-and-answers/bond-market-less-transparent-stock-market-many-bond-transactions-negotiated-privately-pres-q153892703
- https://www.investopedia.com/articles/basics/08/stocks-bonds-performance.asp
- https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/investing/green-bonds
- https://www.icmagroup.org/market-practice-and-regulatory-policy/secondary-markets/bond-market-size/
- https://idbinvest.org/en/blog/gender/few-very-good-reasons-protect-integrity-gender-bonds
- https://www.quora.com/Why-is-East-Asia-more-developed-than-South-and-Southeast-Asia
- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1544612323009595
- https://www.quora.com/Why-would-someone-buy-a-30-year-treasury-bond
- https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/investing/bond-market-crash
- https://www.investopedia.com/terms/q/quantitative-easing.asp
- https://iftp.chinamoney.com.cn/english/svcnrl/20231110/2750976.html
- https://cbonds.com/glossary/blue-bond/
- https://www.thetimes.co.uk/money-mentor/banking-saving/savings-accounts/green-savings-bond
- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1572308921000334
- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S221484502200059X
- https://www.cnn.com/cnn-underscored/money/best-high-yield-bond-funds
- https://www.visualcapitalist.com/which-countries-hold-the-most-us-debt/
- https://www.cfr.org/blog/china-isnt-shifting-away-dollar-or-dollar-bonds
- https://testbook.com/ias-preparation/new-development-bank
- https://www.usbank.com/investing/financial-perspectives/market-news/interest-rates-affect-bonds.html
- https://www.statista.com/statistics/1211855/ten-year-government-bond-yield-country/
- https://www.lewis-knopf.com/financial-rx/volume-10-issue-1/type-bond-safest/
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_bonding
- https://www.ifc.org/content/dam/ifc/doclink/2022/the-green-bond-principles-202206.pdf
- https://www.pimco.com.sg/en-sg/ahy
- https://americanfundsretirement.retire.americanfunds.com/planning/what-is-asset-allocation/stocks-and-bonds.html
- https://www.investor.gov/introduction-investing/investing-basics/investment-products/bonds-or-fixed-income-products/bonds
- https://www.morningstar.com/economy/handicapping-prospects-recession
- https://www.statista.com/statistics/246420/major-foreign-holders-of-us-treasury-debt/
- https://www.investopedia.com/articles/investing/051915/how-short-us-bond-market.asp
- https://www.cmcmarkets.com/en/trading-guides/bonds-vs-stocks
- https://www.treasurydirect.gov/marketable-securities/treasury-bonds/
- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1057521921003136
- https://www.adb.org/publications/niue-fact-sheet
- https://www.clearfinances.net/countries-without-public-debt/
- https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/13/business/bonds-interest-rates.html
- https://www.fool.com/investing/how-to-invest/bonds/bond-market/
- https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2024/03/japan-ends-negative-interest-rates-economy-monetary-policy/
- https://www.adb.org/sites/default/files/institutional-document/435391/strategy-2030-main-document.pdf
- https://www.adb.org/who-we-are/about
- https://www.treasurydirect.gov/kids/basics/basics_sb.htm
- https://www.investopedia.com/articles/investing/100814/why-10-year-us-treasury-rates-matter.asp
- https://europe.pimco.com/en-eu/resources/education/everything-you-need-to-know-about-bonds