BlackRock ties its huge credit facility to ESG targets

• Its credit facility is another example of how BlackRock is committed to ESG.

In this note, Gabe Rissman writes about this WSJ article:

Have to give credit to BlackRock for tying a $4.4B credit facility to sustainability targets. This is real leadership – through the end of March, there had only been $20B in sustainability-linked bonds ever issued.

I’d also call this a major milestone for SASB – Sustainability Accounting Standards Board. BlackRock’s KPIs that determine its repayment rate are based on SASB materiality, and include employment + leadership diversity metrics AND the % of BlackRock’s AUM that is sustainably invested.

This is in addition to BlackRock already orienting its engagement and voting policies around SASB material metrics.