Putable bonds (sometimes called retractable bonds) allow investors to force the issuer to redeem them prior to maturity. Indenture terms differ as to the circumstances when an investor can ‘‘put’’ the bond to the issuer prior to the maturity date and receive its par value. Some bond issues can be put only on certain dates. Some can be put to the issuer in case of a bond rating downgrade. Still others, nicknamed super poison puts, are putable only in the case of an event such as a merger, leveraged buyout, or major financial restructuring and subsequent rating downgrade below investment quality (BBB). In any of these situations, bond investors would suffer a loss of value as the bond’s yield would have to rise and its price fall to compensate for the increase in credit risk. The put option allows the investor to receive the full face value of the bond, plus accrued interest. Since this protection is valuable, investors must pay extra for it. Issuers can lower their debt costs by attaching put provisions to their bond issues.