On 18-22 November 2019 a series of business events was held in Frankfurt as part of the 22nd Euro Finance Week: The Future of Finance and Banking. Center-invest Bank participated in the FAROS institutional investors forum on green finance and in the 29th European Banking Congress.
Speaking at the event, the heads of leading European banks, politicians and academics emphasized that ESG banking is an increasingly popular business model for financial market participants.
In a presentation to European investors, the Chairman of Center-invest Bank’s Board of Directors, Dr Vasily Vysokov, spoke about the bank’s effective application of an ESG banking business model. He also talked about the bank’s successful listing of green bonds on the Moscow Exchange on 15 November 2019. This is the first issue of green bonds in Russia.
"Responsible finance is a global trend, and we are proud that our bank is the first financial institution in Russia to have bonds included in the Moscow Exchange’s Sustainable Development Sector," said Dr Vasily Vysokov. "Experts estimate that by 2050 investment in the global green economy will reach USD100tn. I am confident that the main financial source for this will be private sector investment through green bonds."
Center-invest Bank started providing "green" loans in 2005, financing energy efficiency projects for small business, retail customers and homeowners’ associations in Russia. To date, we have financed 20,700 projects, lending in excess of RUB17bn. These projects have achieved an annual reduction in CO2 emissions of more than 200,000 tonnes (equivalent to planting 8.1m trees).
Representatives of international financial institutions, banks and companies were impressed by the bank’s experience in energy efficiency lending for retail customers, small business, agribusiness and homeowners’ associations, and its programmes to support youth, women’s and social entrepreneurship. It should be noted that on 1 November 2019 Center-invest Bank became an official signatory to the Principles for Responsible Banking of the UNEP Financial Initiative.
Center-invest Bank is a positive example of a socially responsible business based on an ESG banking business model. All of Center-invest Bank’s projects reflect its responsible attitude to the social development of the regions in which it operates, the protection of natural resources, the improvement of the financial literacy of the population, and entrepreneurial development, which collectively represent the future of the Russian economy.