Structuring Sustainable Finance Transactions

Aaron Franklin is one of the world’s most experienced practitioners in structuring and executing sustainable finance transactions. He has nearly a decade experience across two continents, working as an attorney, banker and underwriter on many pioneering transactions. Aaron’s work in sustainable finance began in 2014 with advising clients on the legal issues raised by green bonds as an attorney working in the London office of one of the world’s largest law firms (Latham & Watkins). He went on to be named the firm’s Global Coordinator for Sustainable Capital Markets in 2017 and later founded the firm’s global Sustainable Finance practice. Aaron participated in sustainable finance transactions across the world in this role, including advising the underwriters on the first ever sustainability linked bond. After relocating his practice to New York, in 2020 Aaron shifted his focus from the law to the business of sustainable finance by joining one of the world’s largest banks (SMBC). In this role, Aaron launched a sustainable finance platform covering all products and all clients across the Americas. SMBC rapidly grew to become one of the leading sustainable finance structuring firms in the Americas and a leading advisor for clients of all types looking for cutting edge guidance on green bonds, sustainability-linked loans and related products.

• Part I: Fundamentals of Sustainable Finance.- Chapter 1: History of Sustainable Finance.- Chapter 2: The Rules of Sustainable Finance.- Part II: Sustainable Finance Instruments and Formats.- Chapter 3: Use of Proceeds Format: Deep Dive into Green Bonds and Similar Format Transactions.- Chapter 4: Sustainability-Linked Format: Deep Dive into Sustainability-Linked Loans and Similar Format Transactions.- Chapter 5: Unconventional Formats: Outlying and Emerging Transaction Formats.- Part III: Strategic Considerations and Challenges.- Chapter 6: Enforceability  of Sustainable Finance Commitments.- Chapter 7: Meta-structuring to Facilitate Sustainable Finance Strategy.- Chapter 8: Second Party Opinions and Pre-transaction External Review.- Chapter 9: Greeniums and the Economics of Sustainable Finance Transactions.- Chapter 10: Greenwashing  and Negative Reputational Outcomes.- Chapter 11: Concluding Remarks.