Crédit Agricole CIB specialises in the businesses of capital markets and investment and corporate banking.
» SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IS CENTRAL TO BUSINESS AT CRÉDIT AGRICOLE CIB
Wider consideration of sustainable development challenges
Crédit Agricole CIB has been working to spread the practice of taking into account sustainable development challenges with regard to all of its activities, both by spreading the practice of factoring in the environmental and social consequences linked to its financing transactions and by permanently seeking to develop a product range suited to the new challenges faced by society.
Understanding the environmental sensitivity of transactions
The principles behind factoring in the environmental and social aspects of financing and investment activities during the various phases in transaction analysis and management were defined in 2008. This led to the introduction in 2009 of an appraisal of the environmental and social sensitivity of transactions throughout the Bank.
A transaction Ethics Committee dealing with environmental and social risks (known as the CERES committee and chaired by the Head of Compliance) was created and has taken over the prerogatives of the Equator Principles Committee for project finance. It issues recommendations prior to credit committee meetings for all transactions which it judges require careful tracking of their environmental or social aspects.
Sector policy definitions
Crédit Agricole CIB has committed to including environmental and social criteria in its sector financing policies and publicising these criteria.
The first policy drawn up concerns the financing of military and defense equipment. In 2009, the Bank decided to gradually phase out its lending to companies producing or commercialising anti-personnel mines and cluster bombs.
In 2010, a sector policy defined the framework for intervening and excluding counterparties related to the arms sector: it describes the principles for intervention related to the arms sector by making a distinction between controversial arms (anti-personnel mines and cluster bombs), sensitive arms and other weaponry.
Policies are currently being drawn up for the energy sector that will take climate challenges into account.
More about the Equator Principles
