Coupon step-up
ESG & GovernanceAn increase in a bond's interest rate that applies if the issuer misses its sustainability performance target.
The step-up is the usual penalty in a sustainability-linked bond, and it often amounts to a fraction of a percentage point for the remaining life of the bond. It works as an incentive only if missing the target costs more than meeting it. Check whether the issuer can call the bond before the observation date, which would let it avoid the step-up.
Related terms
Learn the concept
From the research
A Comparative Financial Analysis of Three Listed Companies
Three IT services leaders, five years of numbers: similar growth, very different margins and returns on capital, and their October 2026 valuations.
MarketsIPO Issue Price vs. Listing Price vs. Subsequent Performance
Seven of India's most talked-about IPOs since 2021, tracked from issue price to listing to October 2026. Buying on listing day lost money in six of seven.
ValuationPaytm: Valuing a Company With No Clean Comparable
Paytm is part payments processor, part device business, part loan distributor. Why no single peer fits, and how to value it in parts and in reverse.