Sustainable finance

ESG finance has rapidly moved to a point where every organisation considers the wide variety of sustainable options, whenever they raise finance.  We've been involved in sustainable finance since the very start and know what’s required to achieve the aims of your framework, authentically.

We can help you to develop indicators that hit green or social criteria, while ensuring that your legals reflect your indicators and margin ratchets. In addition, we have advised on finance deals that are not sustainability linked on day one but have the potential to become sustainability linked over time.

Our strategic approach means we’re able to explain complex, cutting-edge options to the multiple stakeholders involved.

Our lawyers

Our team is at the forefront of developments in sustainable finance.  We specialise in new, innovative transactions having carried out deals in this space for over a decade including pioneering one of the first ever university bonds for the University of Cambridge.

Our experience

• The University of Hull set itself the ambitious goal of becoming a carbon neutral campus by 2027.  We advised on both a green private placement and sustainability linked bank facility raising £86m of funding to accelerate the University’s ambition.
• We supported social housing group Flagship Group in issuing its debut £250 million green-listed bond, with a 40-year term at 1.875% coupon.
• We advised Nesta on the creation and close of a £20 million arts and culture investment debt fund. A mix of public, private and philanthropic investors – Arts Council England, the National Lottery Heritage Fund, Big Society Capital, Bank of America, the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation and Nesta itself – invested in the fund via loans and grants.
• We advised Wells Fargo Bank NA in relation to one of the first sustainability linked revolving credit facilities using the Loan Market Association’s recommended provisions for sustainability linked loans (released May 2023).  The borrower was a FTSE 100 company.
• We advised Adnams PLC on a sustainability linked bank facility with environmental performance targets linked to an interest margin ratchet.
• We advised a university on a “sustainability-ready” revolving credit facility with an option to implement sustainability targets with margin ratchets over the term of the agreement.