First Republic Bank

The financial institution has gender-balanced representation among its senior leadership roles where 49% are women.

No leading practices were identified for First Republic Bank in the respecting planetary boundaries measurement area.

First Republic Bank discloses the proportion of its total direct operations workforce for each employee category by gender and race or ethnicity. It also discloses the amount of finance it directed towards SMEs since 2011, which is equal to USD 5.4 billion.

In terms of its approach to senior leadership accountability, First Republic Bank has an opportunity to link the remuneration of its executive or management teams to sustainability performance criteria. While it publicly commits to only one aspect of gender equality and women’s empowerment, which is not to discriminate based on gender, it has an opportunity to commit to all aspects. In terms of female representation in leadership positions, women are underrepresented on the board where only three out of 11 board members are women. First Republic Bank could disclose the ratio of basic salary and remuneration of women to men in its total direct operations workforce for each employee category, and disclose the actions taken to address any pay gaps. Moreover, it has an opportunity to describe its engagement approach on sustainability themes and impact topics with clients and investees.

First Republic Bank has an opportunity to disclose a target to reach net-zero financed emissions by 2050 as well as the key sectors and companies it has identified as priorities to engage with on climate change, specifically on the alignment with the Paris Agreement. There is no evidence that the financial institution discloses its financing activities devoted to climate solutions. Regarding nature and biodiversity, it could demonstrate its commitment to minimising its negative impacts or financing regenerative solutions. No evidence was found regarding the financial institution’s approach to fossil fuels that spans across the fossil fuel value chain, such as the amount or share of finance it directs towards fuels, or its stance on financing companies with new fossil fuel projects.

First Republic Bank has an opportunity to provide a publicly available policy statement committing it to respect human rights laid out in the UN Guiding Principles and the ILO declaration on fundamental rights at work. Furthermore, it has an opportunity to describe a comprehensive process for identifying its human rights risks and impacts across all its activities, especially its financing activities. While it discloses the ages of its board of directors, it could disclose it for each employee category. Additionally, it has an opportunity to disclose the amount of finance directed towards women-owned businesses or low-income developing countries. While it has a grievance mechanism accessible to workers and external stakeholders, it could specify if it is confidential and anonymous and if all human rights complaints can be raised.