Second Party Opinions
High-Quality Assessments of Sustainable Debt Instruments
We provide issuers and borrowers of sustainable debt instruments with independent opinions on their ESG commitments for Green, Social, Sustainable Bonds and Loans or Sustainability-Linked Bonds and Loans. Our Second Party Opinions (SPOs) allow issuers and borrowers to strengthen the transparency and robustness of their ESG debt frameworks, by providing investors and lenders with an independent expert assessment.
We assess both Use of Proceed and Sustainability-linked debt format by evaluating how the ESG financing frameworks align with ICMA (International Capital Market Association) and LMA (Loan Market Association) sustainability principles. In addition to SPOs, we carry out post-issuance KPI performance certification and verifications of allocation and impact.
All types of debt issuers entrust us with the assessment of their debt instruments and frameworks:
- Small, mid-sized and large corporates,
- Sovereigns, supranationals, government agencies and state-owned corporates
- Financial institutions.
The combined expertise from imug rating, acquired in 2023, and EthiFinance has allowed us to build a team of experts in corporate sustainability and sustainable finance with a proven track-record of assessing sustainable debt instruments, their alignment with different sustainability principles and standards and their concrete environmental and social impact.
Our Sustainable Finance teams are based in our European offices (France, Germany and Spain) and communicate, manage projects and deliver reports in English, French, German, and Spanish. Translation of reports into other languages is also proposed.
Transition Finance Second-Party Opinions
EthiFinance provides independent Second Party Opinions for transition‑labelled bonds and loans, helping issuers demonstrate the credibility and climate impact of their transition strategies. Our three‑pillar methodology assesses issuer readiness, alignment of financed activities with ICMA/LMA transition finance guidance, and their contribution to 1.5°C‑aligned decarbonisation.
Our comply or explain and context‑adapted approach ensures that issuers at any maturity level can access a fair and robust evaluation.
By partnering with EthiFinance, organisations strengthen investor confidence and clearly showcase how their financing supports a credible climate transition.
Find out more about our Climate Transition Second Party Opinion Solution.
Client benefits
Broad client base
European analyst team
Variety of debt instruments
Flexible and adaptable offer
Our clients appreciate our availability, flexibility and our proximity to their markets.
*As of May 2024
Our Published SPOs
Contact Our Experts
Methodologies
- Issuer ESG Assessment We evaluate the issuer’s sustainability profile by examining its strategic alignment with sustainability objectives and the strength of its ESG risk management policies. This provides essential context on the issuer’s overall commitment to sustainable practices.
- Alignment with Market Principles We assess the alignment of the financing framework with international standards. For Use of Proceeds Instruments, this includes the ICMA or LMA principles covering Use of Proceeds, Project Evaluation, Proceeds Management, and Reporting. For Sustainability-Linked Instruments, we review KPIs, Sustainability Performance Targets (SPTs), Instrument Characteristics, Reporting, and Verification.
- Expected Impact We assess the potential contribution of the financing instrument to environmental and/or social objectives. For Use of Proceeds Instruments, we examine the materiality and ambition of the projects being financed—looking at how significantly the projects address sustainability challenges, the scale of expected benefits, and their alignment with strategic goals such as climate action, biodiversity protection, or social equity. For Sustainability-Linked Instruments, the focus shifts to the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and Sustainability Performance Targets (SPTs). We evaluate whether the selected KPIs represent core, measurable sustainability issues for the issuer and whether the SPTs are ambitious enough to drive genuine performance improvement over time.
