Bank of Communications

In terms of senior leadership accountability, Bank of Communications assigns responsibility for sustainability to the board of directors. Furthermore, the financial institution has a gender-balanced board of directors where 4 out of 10 members are women.

Bank of Communications discloses the aggregate amount and share of finance (loans in support of energy conservation and emissions reductions) it devotes to climate solutions while specifying what these solutions are.

Bank of Communications discloses the proportion of its total direct operations workforce for each employee category by age group and gender. The bank also discloses the amount of finance it directs towards micro-, small,- and mid-sized enterprises.

In terms of its approach to senior leadership accountability, there is no evidence Bank of Communications links the remuneration of its executive or management teams to sustainability performance criteria. No evidence was found that the financial institution is committed to gender equality and women’s empowerment and the bank also has an opportunity to reach at least 40% female representation in senior leadership positions. Additionally, the financial institution has an opportunity to describe its engagement approach on sustainability themes and impact topics with clients and investees.

While Bank of Communications discloses a target to reach carbon neutrality before 2060, it does not disclose a target to reach net- zero financed emissions by 2050. The financial institution also has an opportunity to disclose the key sectors and companies it has identified as priorities to engage with on climate change, specifically on the alignment with the Paris Agreement. Regarding nature and biodiversity, no evidence was found that the financial institution is committed to minimising its negative impacts or financing regenerative solutions.

There is no evidence that Bank of Communications has a publicly available policy statement committing it to respect human rights laid out in the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and the ILO declaration on fundamental rights at work. The financial institution also has an opportunity to describe a comprehensive process for identifying its human rights risks and impacts across all its activities, especially its financing activities. Additionally, there is no evidence that the financial institution discloses the amount of finance directed towards women-owned businesses or to another usually excluded groups and low-income developing countries.