Why has the once fallen star of income bonds started to rise after spending over seventy years below the financial horizon? Is it because income bonds provide many of the advantages of debt financing with the non-fixed payments feature of equity financing? Could it be caused by the high yields they carry considering the risk involved? Is it the result of the large tax savings created in many cases? All of these questions are important. Eighteen years ago income bonds were one of the least respected and most disliked types of securities that a company could issue. Today they have a limited but growing use and an ever increasing acceptance. This study is an attempt to determine and give reasons for the development and use of income bonds in the past, present, and future. It traces the development of income bonds, explains the advantages and disadvantages associated with them, and prognosticates about their future.