Now companies are shifting their approach to the climate cause, after emboldened Republican leaders have stepped up their attacks on investments that try to achieve environmental goals such as cutting emissions, as well social objectives like promoting equality, or governance targets. Bonds funding environmental projects, known as green bonds, are the most commonly sold type of ESG debt.
Since Donald Trump’s return to the White House, US companies have all but abandoned the green bonds that were once touted as a way for corporate America to have a hand in fixing the planet.
Only one such US dollar bond from an American firm has hit the market in 2025, a US$350 million ($469.33 million) note from Oglethorpe Power in January, marking the slowest start to a year in at least a decade. For years the main sellers of the bonds have included banks and utilities, with household names like Apple and Walmart also occasionally making splashy issues.
