“Following the first-time bond placements as an investment-grade-rated issuer earlier this month, today’s successful sustainability bond offering marks another milestone for our company,” said adidas CFO Harm Ohlmeyer. “The proceeds will help fund environmental as well as social initiatives at adidas as we are committed to keep building on our industry leadership in the area of sustainability.”

Proceeds from the offering will be used in accordance with adidas’ newly created sustainability bond framework. The framework has been validated by a second-party opinion from Sustainalytics, a leading independent provider of sustainability ratings, who confirmed that the framework is credible, impactful and aligned with established sustainability principles. Eligible sustainable projects cover investments into more sustainable materials and processes as well as projects that positively impact communities. More specifically, this includes purchases of recycled materials for sustainably sourced products, investments into renewable energy production and energy-efficient buildings as well as various initiatives to create lasting change for underrepresented communities. The full sustainability bond framework is available on adidas-group.com, where the company will also publish regular updates on the allocation of proceeds.

adidas has taken important steps toward optimizing its capital structure and financing costs in the recent past. In early August, the company received strong first-time investment-grade ratings by both S&P and Moody’s. While Standard & Poor’s rated adidas ‘A+’, Moody’s granted the company an ‘A2’ rating.