Societe Generale

In terms of its approach towards impact management, Societe Generale acknowledges that its financing activities have both positive and negative impacts. It also identified and prioritised its impacts through a materiality assessment process which included feedback from external stakeholders. Moreover, Societe Generale describes its approach to engagement on sustainability themes and impact topics with clients and investees, including escalation steps in its environmental and social risks management system. It also publishes case studies describing where it has engaged successfully with clients on sustainability themes and impact topics. Concerning female representation in leadership positions, the bank has a gender-balanced board of directors where six out of 15 members are women.

As a member of the Net-Zero Banking Alliance, Societe Generale has set a target of net-zero financed emissions by 2050. In terms of engagement, the bank discloses the key sectors it has identified as priorities to engage with on climate change and the rationale for choosing these priorities. Moreover, as a member of Climate Action 100+, its subsdiary Lyxor discloses that it collectively engages with its clients on the topic of climate change. Societe Generale aims to raise EUR 20 billion for renewable energies by 2023 and reports that it has already provided EUR 12.9 billion. Furthermore, the bank is committed to minimising its negative impacts on nature and biosiversity and discloses its process for identifying its nature- and biodiversity-related impacts across all its financing activities.

Societe Generale has a publicly available policy statement committing it to respect human rights and respect the ILO core labour rights. Furthermore, the bank publicly discloses the results of its human rights risk assessments, which are aggregated across its operations and locations, and provides a case study describing how it has acted on a salient human rights risk issue. Societe Generale discloses a global tax strategy and discloses its approach to lobbying and political engagement, as well as discloses its lobbying expenditures. In terms of diversity, the bank discloses the proportion of women in its total direct operations workforce for each employee category. It also discloses the amount of finance it directs towards small- and medium-sized enterprises.

There is no evidence that Societe Generale links the remuneration of its executive or management teams to sustainability performance criteria. In terms of gender equality, the bank has an opportunity to reach at least 40% female representation in senior leadership positions. It could also disclose the ratio of basic salary and remuneration of women to men in its total direct operations workforce for each employee category, as well as the actions taken to address any pay gaps.

Societe Generale could disclose interim absolute emissions reduction targets at the group level, such as a 45% reduction in financed emissions by 2030. While the bank discloses its rationale for engaging with certain sectors on the topic of climate change, it has an opportunity to disclose that engagement is specifically focused on alignment with the Paris Agreement. Regarding climate solutions, Societe Generale could clarify whether the green financing definition draws on the same international frameworks with which the bank defines its sustainability bonds. No evidence was found regarding Societe Generale’s approach to fossil fuels which spans across the fossil fuel value chain and across its financing activities or its stance on financing companies with new fossil fuel projects.

While Societe Generale describes a process for identifying its human rights risks, it could clarify if this covers all its financing activities. There is no evidence that the bank has a mechanism, or participates in a shared mechanism, accessible to all external individuals and communities to raise human rights complaints or concerns. To provide transparency on financial inclusivity, Societe Generale has an opportunity to disclose the amount of finance directed towards, for example, women-owned businesses or low-income developing countries.