Verizon Communications Inc. settled its fifth green bond offering of $1 billion, with the net proceeds expected to be allocated entirely toward renewable energy investments to accelerate the transition to greener electrical grids across the U.S. This follows Verizon’s announcement in February that the company fully allocated the net proceeds of its fourth green bond to renewable energy investments. Verizon has now issued five green bonds for a total of $5 billion since 2019.
“I believe our actions speak louder than our words, and I am proud of the steps Verizon has taken towards our ambitious environmental and social impact goals,” said Tony Skiadas, Verizon’s executive vice president and chief financial officer. “As one of the largest corporate green bond issuers in the U.S., and as a leader in green finance and diversity in the capital markets with our Green Financing Framework, we are proud that our actions are contributing to greener power grids across the nation.”
In 2021, Verizon deepened its commitment to fostering diversity, equity and inclusion in economic opportunities in the capital markets by including a pledge in its Green Financing Framework to only engage underwriters for its green bond transactions that have established clear and impactful commitments in support of the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and/or are a diverse-owned firm or have a core mission of promoting diversity, equity and inclusion. Consistent with these criteria, the company is proud to partner with Wells Fargo Securities and four minority- and women-owned firms as lead underwriters for its fifth green bond: CastleOak Securities, L.P., Loop Capital Markets, Ramirez & Co., Inc. and Siebert Williams Shank. The five firms shared equally in fees paid and responsibility for bringing this offering to the market.
This capital market transaction aligns with Verizon’s long-standing commitment to drive both environmental and social progress as part of its responsible business plan, Citizen Verizon, empowering the technology leader to deliver on its mission to move the world forward by addressing pressing societal issues.
