Sustainable Corporate Financing

Course 2: Sustainable Corporate Financing – Application

The financial sector can play a key role in a transition towards sustainable development. Finance professionals are in a position to strategically contribute to an alignment of the real economy with sustainability targets by allocating capital in all forms, such as bank lending and direct, as well as indirect, equity, and debt investments. These targets concern the environment, and society at large, including future generations.

Financial institutions need to strategically address potential financial and sustainability-related risks to address sustainability issues. In the environmental dimension, increasingly rigid policies and regulations force financial market participants to integrate these aspects into their operations and adjust their reporting accordingly.

On the other hand, the transition of the economy towards more sustainability or the development of sustainability solutions will lead to additional and specific financing needs.

The course “Sustainable Corporate Financing – Applications” emphasizes sustainability from the perspectives of equity, debt, and bank financing. Participants will gain in-depth insights on which financing options and considerations apply in the respective fields of action (exclusion, ESG integration, transition, and sustainability solutions) previously elaborated in the foundation course. In addition, this course will elaborate on the question, of how specific financing solutions can contribute to closing the SDG financing gap.

Specific impact-oriented and innovative financing approaches will be discussed, focusing on their relevance, origin, and possibilities to manage and measure the impact realized. Practical examples and case studies will be discussed for all financing approaches.

What you'll learn

• Course 2: Sustainable Corporate Financing – Application
• You will learn to:
• Elaborate on the role of different forms of financing (equity, debt, bank) in the transition toward sustainable development
• Assess how the different forms of financing match the varying sustainability strategies of companies
• Characterize specific sustainability-oriented financing products, such as green bonds, sustainability-linked bonds and loans, and targeted investment funds
• Reflect on return and risk implications of sustainable financing strategies
• Discuss how specific impact-oriented and innovative financing strategies can help to close the financing gap to achieve sustainable development goals
• Compare different approaches to manage and measure the impact.