Societe Generale issues its first green bond on Ethereum

The third-largest bank in France, Societe Generale, reported issuing its first digital green bond as a Security Token on the Ethereum public blockchain. The bond, registered by Forge, a subsidiary of Société Générale, went public on Nov. 30. 

The bond has a value of 10 million euros (around $11 million) and a maturity of three years. Its “green” status means that the net proceeds of this bond will be used to finance or refinance products and companies classified under the Eligible Green Activities (ESG) category.

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The digital infrastructure of the bond grants 24/7 open access to the data on its carbon footprint through the bond’s smart contract. According to the bank:

“This enables issuers and investors to measure the carbon emissions of their securities on the financial infrastructure.” 

Another innovation of the bond is a technical option for investors to settle securities on-chain through the EUR CoinVertible, a euro-pegged stablecoin issued by Forge in April 2023. Societe Generale clearly keeps in mind the upcoming wave of the central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) with this option:

“While Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDC) solutions are being experimented, this panel of settlement methods demonstrates the large capabilities of SG-FORGE in providing full spectrum of on-chain services.”

Societe Generale has been quite active in the crypto sector, issuing euro bonds on the Ethereum blockchain and security tokens on the Tezos blockchain and proposing Dai stablecoin loans in exchange for bond tokens. In July 2023, Forge became the first company to obtain the highest access license for crypto services in France. 

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