Sustainability is one of the areas in which Spain is standing out in the world. As well as ambitious pubic plans to boost renewable energies set in motion in recent years, some of the country’s largest multinationals are heading up the ecological transition with the development of large responsible energy generation infrastructures.
In the banking sector, the large Spanish institutions are mobilising resources and harnessing their global influence to make progress on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and combat climate change. Spain’s largest two banks - Banco Santander and BBVA – are the latest examples of the banking commitment to sustainability.
Banco Santander signs up to ‘Net Zero’ ambition
Santander City, in Boadilla del Monte (Madrid). EFE/Ángel Díaz
Santander – one of the largest banks in the world, with more than 148 million clients – has just established its goals for achieving zero net carbon emissions throughout the group by 2050, in line with the targets of the Paris Agreement. This ambition covers both the group’s activity – which has been carbon neutral since 2020 – and the emissions of its clients.
Its first goals in terms of decarbonisation are clear: by 2030, Santander will cease to provide financial services to electricity generation clients with more than 10% of income from thermal coal – one of the forms of energy emitting the most greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Furthermore, before the end of that year, the bank will completely eliminate its exposure to thermal coal mining around the world. As well as these two pillars, Santander hopes to complete its roadmap for carbon neutrality over the course of the coming months, which will include decarbonisation targets for other important sectors, such as oil, gas, transport, mining and steel.
As Ana Botín, President of Banco Santander, stressed, “We are one of the largest banks in the world, and hence are under a responsibility and have an opportunity to support the ecological transition and encourage people and companies to be more sustainable”. Along this line, the bank undertakes to work with its clients to facilitate their transition and reduce their carbon emissions. To do so, it has teams specialised in environmental, social and governance affairs, it collaborates with the Banking Environment Initiative to develop a framework to work with its clients and is a member of Climate Action 100+, with the aim of promoting actions that mitigate climate change among the largest contaminating gas emitting companies in the world.
In 2020, Santander promoted the financing of newly created renewable energies, which led to the supply of energy to 10.3 million homes and prevented the emission of 60 million tonnes of CO2. Furthermore, over the next four years, it hopes to finance or facilitate financing of 120 billion euros in green financing, a figure it plans to increase to 220 billion euros by 2030. Since 2019, Santander has financed or facilitated 33.8 billion euros in green financing.
BBVA – best bank in the world in sustainable financing
BBVA headquarters in Madrid. EFE/Emilio Naranjo
The United States magazine Global Finance, an expert in financial markets, has this week recognised BBVA as the best investment bank in the world in terms of sustainable financing, a global recognition that rewards its efforts by offering its clients a large variety of investment banking products and solutions and accompanying them in the transition towards a more sustainable future. This took place at its 22nd edition of its ‘Global Finance Best Investment Bank Awards’, at which it recognised the capacities of the investment bank. Previously, this publication had already recognised BBVA as the best investment bank for sustainable financing in Western Europe and Latin America in its 2020 edition.
The banking institution, headed up by Onur Genç, highlights that the recognition by Global Finance is a reward that encourages the bank to continue down the path taken in February 2018, when BBVA presented its 2025 Commitment - the group’s strategy to combat climate change and boost sustainable development. This roadmap is also in line with the Paris Agreement on Climate Change and the SDG, which seeks a balance between investments in sustainable energy and fossil fuels. With financing, management and commitment as its three pillars, the strategy has already mobilised 100 billion euros in green financing, sustainable infrastructures, social entrepreneurship and financial inclusion until 2025. At the close of 2020, BBVA had already mobilised more than 50 billion euros.
In addition to its global recognition for sustainability, it has also been recognised as the best equity bank in Western Europe and the best investment bank in Argentina, Spain and Turkey.
CaixaBank, Bankia and Bankinter, on the ‘Dow Jones Sustainability Index’
As well as the latest news about Santander and BBVA on sustainability, in November, the 'Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI)' - one of the benchmark indices on sustainability among the largest companies in the world - acknowledged the work of large Spanish banks in constructing a more sustainable planet.
As well as Santander and BBVA, Bankinter and CaixaBank are also listed among the 25 most sustainable banks in the world on the 'DJSI World'. At a European level ('DJSI Europe'), the index drawn up by S&P includes Bankia among the 10 financial institutions on the continent to make the most progress in sustainable policies.
The five Spanish banks present on the list form part of the 19 Spanish multinationals listed on the 'Dow Jones Sustainability Index' in its different fields of activity and geographic levels, out of a total of 323 companies – chosen from among the 2,500 largest listed companies in the world. ACS, Ferrovial, Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy, Inditex, Amadeus, Indra, Iberdrola, Endesa, Enagás, Naturgy, Red Eléctrica, Mapfre, Grifols and Telefónica are among this 10% of the most sustainable companies in the world.