Center-invest Bank took part in the first business forum in Rostov South of Russia: Conditions for an Industrial Boom, which focused on the region’s strategic development. The event was organized by the Expert Yug Analytical Center.

At the Industrial Boom in the South of Russia: Potential and Challenges plenary session, Lidia Simonova, Chairman of the Management Board of Center-invest Bank, shared an analysis of the region’s investment activity and the bank’s role in economic development.

«Industrialization in the South of Russia shows a high rate of efficiency, with growth rates significantly exceeding the all-Russian level. The diversification of the economy and the region’s entrepreneurial potential make it possible to develop not only start-ups but also large-scale production facilities, and Center-invest Bank is actively involved in financing SMEs,» Lidia Simonova said.

Center-invest Bank is a leading SME lender in Russia, ranking fifth in terms of loans issued and ninth in terms of loan portfolio size by 2023. The bank participates in all state programs of concessional financing for SME, is an accredited partner of the SME Corporation, and supports the Rostov Special Economic Zone residents.

The forum also included a discussion session ESG Development Through the Eyes of the State and Business. Sergey Smirnov, Doctor of Economics, Deputy Chairman of Center-invest Bank’s Management Board for Reporting, Analysis and Finance shared the experience of the bank in the ESG banking realization and implementation.

«Green» financing has been among priority interests of the bank since 2005. During this time, more than 24 thousand energy efficiency projects worth 22.2 billion rubles have been financed. The environmental impact of these projects is equivalent to reducing CO2 emissions by 264,000 tonnes, or planting 10.6 million trees. The Bank developed a methodology and conducted an ESG rating of more than 4 thousand business clients. The bank assesses energy efficiency and calculates the reduction in CO2 emissions for financed loans: to date, the bank has estimated the carbon footprint of over 2,400 mortgages issued and over 1,100 agricultural loans.

«Our task, as an organization functioning by ESG principles, is to measure and assess how far we are from carbon neutrality in order to bring the bank and its clients closer to reducing the negative impact on the environment in parallel with the industrial development,» Sergey Smirnov believes.