General information and reports

DZ BANK was an early advocate of sustainability. Important milestones were:

• the signing of voluntary commitments such as the UN Global Compact (2008), the Equator Principles (2013), and the Principles for Responsible Banking (2020)
  
  
• the introduction of sustainability assessment procedures in lending (2009), as well as the development of specific sector principles (2011) and the introduction of exclusion criteria (2014)
  
  
• achieving ISS ESG (formerly ISS-Oekom) Prime Status in 2011 for the first time, and maintaining our status ever since. 
  

The issuance of DZ BANK's Green Bonds in 2018, 2020, and 2021 was another significant step for DZ BANK. As a member of the Climate Bonds Initiative and the International Capital Markets Association, DZ BANK stands firm for transparency and disclosure in green bonds as well as compliance with specific sustainability loan principles. In 2021, DZ BANK was the lead bank for green, social and sustainable transactions with a total volume of more than € 52 bn making it one of the top 3 syndicate banks in the sustainable bond market in Germany.  

With a financing volume of about € 6.0 bn in 2021, DZ BANK AG is also one of Germany's largest renewable energies financiers (especially wind power and photovoltaics).  

In order to intensify the dialogue on sustainability in the DZ BANK Group, we brought the Group's sustainability activities together and established the Group Corporate Responsibility Committee (CRC) in 2014.

The committee consists of the sustainability coordinators of each of DZ BANK Group's subsidiary companies. They provide input for different departments so that common standards can be developed. The aim of the CRC is to exploit market opportunities and avoid risks while enhancing corporate social responsibility. In this sense, the CRC works closely together on issues relating to environmental management, sustainability in the supply chain and in core business activities, as well as coordinating reporting activities. DZ BANK Group's commitment to climate change was substantiated by the Group-wide climate strategy signed in 2018.

Environmental Finance: How the sustainability agenda transforms the banking sector (Dr. Cornelius Riese)