Royal Bank of Canada

The institution publishes an engagement report on sustainability impact topics and has a publicly available policy statement committing to respect ILO core labour rights and human rights. Decision-making and oversight for the sustainability strategy are assigned to the highest governance body, with performance criteria for senior executive remuneration linked to specific sustainability targets. Implementation responsibility for the sustainability strategy is delegated to various functions, teams, or committees.

The stewardship policy encompasses client and stakeholder engagement, advocacy, and partnerships, including criteria for successful stewardship results, escalation routes for unsuccessful outcomes, and definitions for when escalations should occur. The institution discloses its membership in trade associations and transparently identifies key sectors, clients, and investees for climate engagement, as well as prioritising sectors for nature-related impacts. Additionally, it monitors its scope 1-2 emissions.

The financial institution expects suppliers to respect specific workers’ rights and has the opportunity to reference all ILO fundamental rights at work. It can disclose how it determines a living wage in its operational regions. Although it states it does not make political contributions, this commitment is not formalised in a public policy document. The institution identifies material sustainability impacts but could provide more detail on its process for prioritising these impacts across its value chain. It has the opportunity to establish a stewardship policy that aligns with its sustainability strategy.

While it does not provide products or services to certain fossil fuel projects, it does not address all fossil fuels. Its targets for climate solutions could be more defined in terms of time and measurability. The institution refers to nature protection and restoration but could disclose a strategy for priority sectors. It provides information on financed emissions but could increase coverage and detail the share of emissions disclosed. While it monitors scope 3 emissions, it could include additional categories and rationale for exclusions.

It is recommended to disclose client breakdown by income group and the number of employees or revenue per country. The risk assessment process includes some ILO rights but could cover the full set. It is also recommended to disclose the process for identifying social risks related to the net zero transition and provide examples of actions taken on salient human rights issues in the last three years.

This scorecard refers to information in English which was publicly available by July 15 2024. AuM and Total assets are stated in USD for comparability and have been calculated based on reported local currency values multiplied by applicable IMF currency converter values.