Repeat green-bond issuers cut financing costs, but first-timers pay a premium
Companies that repeatedly issue green bonds lower their cost of capital, while firms issuing them for the first time actually face higher costs, a Swedish study finds. The finding suggests markets reward sustained green commitments over one-off efforts—a crucial distinction for CFOs weighing ESG strategy as a genuine business lever.
Originaltitel: The Reputation Effect of Repeated Green-Bond Issuance and Its Impact on the Cost of Capital
<p>This study explores the effect of frequent green-bond issuance on a firm's financing costs. Using a sample of listed Swedish real estate companies issuing a total of 1074 bonds over the period from 2011 to 2021, difference-in-differences analyses and instrumental variable estimations are applied to identify the causal impact of frequent green-bond vis-& agrave;-vis frequent non-green-bond issuance on a firm's cost of capital and credit rating. The paper argues that repetitive issuance lowers a firm's cost of capital, while the effects of first or one-time green-bond issuance are the opposite. In line with the reputation capital hypothesis, issuing green bonds even lowers the firm's cost of equity capital, while issuing non-green bonds does not affect the cost of equity.</p>