61
Are banks
selective in what
and whom they
fund?
In each financial institution a clear
policy has been developed about which
products may be sold to which custom-
ers. Requests from controversial sectors
are therefore not handled in the same
manner as those from companies with
an irreproachable track record.
In various financial institutions, a “limiting”
loan policy was developed. That means that
additional CSR criteria are used to assess
credit files of companies from the following
sectors:
producers of biological weapons, land
mines, cluster bombs or weapons with de-
pleted uranium
weapon trade
palm oil companies
nuclear companies
coal industry
electricity industry
etc.
Sectors or companies that practice corporate
governance, are promoted. For example, the
institutions support projects that promote the
generation of renewable energy or green loans
are placed on the market at lower rates and
better conditions.
On an international level, various voluntary
initiatives exist, such as the
United Nations
Global Compact
or the UNEP (
United Nations
Environment Programme
)
Financial Initiative,
two policy initiatives of the United Nations
to promote socially responsible and environ-
mentally-friendly enterprises. They also state
guidelines for the funding of specific contro-
versial sectors.
Only half of the surveyed institutions appear
to have effectively signed one or more of these
CSR initiatives effectively. Smaller institu-
tions, in particular, dread the red tape this
entails. However, this does not imply by defi-
nition that they do not comply with the CSR
principles.
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Ethical enterprise