BNP Paribas, 1st French bank for Corporate Knights and 1st European bank for the V.E. agency

Specialized third parties assess BNP Paribas’ extra-financial performance on a regular basis. Several recent ratings and rankings have confirmed the Group’s leading position on sustainability issues, both nationally and internationally. Take a look at the latest notable distinctions received by BNP Paribas.

CORPORATE KNIGHTS : BNP Paribas, 1st European Bank

In 2022, BNP Paribas was included for the 8th consecutive year in the renowned Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations ranking established by Canadian specialized magazine Corporate Knights. As the 1st French bank and 7th bank overall (out of a total of 576 banks assessed) of the 2022 rankings, the Group obtained a C rating and secured the 76th rank among the most sustainable companies in the world.

Corporate Knights’ methodology chiefly acknowledges the active role played by BNP Paribas in developing positive impact financial products and services, the most heavily weighted criterion in the Global 100 methodology for the banking sector. The share of women in management bodies (Board of Directors and Executive Committee), the integration of non-financial performance indicators in the variable compensation of top management, and the social security scheme Group employees benefit from, were also instrumental in making the Group a leader among its peers.

Corporate Knights is both a leading business magazine and an independent investment research and consultancy firm. It issues every year its “Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations”, featuring the 100 companies worldwide that have shown the greatest commitment to sustainable development and which successfully reconcile social responsibility and financial performance. To compile its 2022 ranking, Corporate Knights analysed nearly 7,000 listed companies that achieved gross income of over $1 billion in the 2020 fiscal year. Those companies were assessed in relation to their industry peers, across a total of 25 performance indicators. Access the 2022 Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations Ranking

V.E : BNP Paribas, 1st European bank

In 2021, for the third consecutive year, BNP Paribas was doubly assessed by the agency V.E, and obtained superlative results in both cases. In December 2021, the Group thus obtained the maximum rating of A1+ following its third solicited rating, as well as an updated score of 71/100 for its ESG Profile. These results enable the Group to maintain its position as the first bank in the “Diversified Banks” sector in Europe (out of a total of 31 companies) and to position itself in the global top 1% (across all sectors and regions) of companies rated by the agency to date, which represents more than 4,800 entities. They also enable BNP Paribas to remain a constituent of the Euronext ethical indices.

Performed every two years through the completion of a detailed questionnaire (updated every other year), the ESG Profile covers 21 themes related to the environmental, social and governance issues of the assessed company. In 2021, BNP Paribas particularly distinguished itself (with a score greater than or equal to 80/100) in terms of environmental strategy, non-discrimination and diversity, career management, and governance of the Board of Directors. Complementing and enriching the analysis of the ESG Profile, V.E solicited rating is based on a qualitative review of the most material CSR issues the Group has to address. It is performed through the organization of high-level interviews with key players of BNP Paribas’ ESG risk management, with a specific focus on Reputation, Operational Efficiency, Human Capital and Legal Security. This year, Group policies pertaining to the fight against climate change and the protection of biodiversity, dialogue with employee representative bodies, and ethics applied to artificial intelligence and data protection, were discussed during the interviews.

V.E (formerly Vigeo Eiris) is a key player in extra-financial analysis, and was acquired by Moody’s in April 2019. Its activities cover the production of ESG scores, climate data, and sustainability ratings, as well as the sustainable finance certification.

BNP Paribas remains listed in the FTSE4Good ethical index series

FSTE Russell gave BNP Paribas a rating of 4.4/5 as part of its ESG Rating*, positioning the Group in the top 4% of companies in the banking sector. BNP Paribas thus remains a constituent in the FTSE4Good ethical index series, which integrate companies demonstrating advanced environmental, social and governance practices, in application of recognized international standards.

Launched in 2001, the FTSE4Good ethical index series integrate companies working in favor of the environment, striving to develop dialogue with their stakeholders, and supporting universal human rights principles. Established by FTSE Russell, a subsidiary of the London Stock Exchange Group, the FTSE4Good series is based on the results of the ESG Rating, which scores companies on eight major extra-financial dimensions.

CDP: recognised transparency for publications

For the 8th consecutive year, BNP Paribas secured an A- rating, positioning itself in the Leadership category, in the evaluation of the CDP (Carbon Disclosure Project) analyzing the quality of companies and communities’ climate change disclosure. In 2021, more than 13,000 companies responded to the CDP climate questionnaire. Founded in 2000, the CDP is a non-profit organization working towards the harmonization and transparency of companies, cities, states and regions’ publications relating to their environmental impacts. The CDP has established itself as the gold standard of environmental reporting with the richest and most comprehensive dataset on corporate and city action.

«Despite increasingly fierce competition, a logical consequence of the appropriation by a growing number of companies of sustainability issues, BNP Paribas has once again succeeded in securing a seat among the most advanced companies in the world in terms of ESG management. The scorings handed out by four leading extra-financial rating entities attest to this, and position the Group among sustainability leaders at the national, regional and international levels», – Laurence Pessez, Global Head of CSR at BNP Paribas