Sustainability is the paradigm of the moment and even the world of luxury, traditionally one of the most polluting, is beginning to adapt. The first company to do so is the Italian one Prada, which has signed a loan linked to sustainability with Credit Agricole Group. This operation, a first in the sector, introduces a reward mechanism which allows the achievement of ambitious sustainability objectives to be linked to an annual margin adjustment.
The Sustainability Term Loan (term loan linked to sustainability) therefore consists of a five-year loan of 50 million euros whose interest rate can be reduced according to the achievement of objectives relating to the environmental impact of its activity. The three parameters that Credit Agricole will take into consideration are: number of stores with LEED Gold or Platinum energy saving and low impact certifications, number of hours of training for employees and the use of Prada Re-Nylon (regenerated nylon) for your own production.
Even if the amount of the financing is relatively low, the group led by Miuccia Prada and Patrizio Bertelli, and listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, sends an important signal. Just as the initiative of another large Italian group, Enel, is significant, this time in the energy sector which is also the one most involved – not only financially but industrially – in the commitment to protect the environment. About a month ago, after the success of the first issue in the US in September, Enel launched – and it is the first in Europe to have done so – a bonds for 2,5 billion linked to the UN sustainability goals. Demands exceeded supply four times.
