Sustainability
Our ESG Policy
Recognising the increasingly active role that banking and asset management industries play in addressing global sustainability issues such as climate change, Arab Bank Switzerland (ABS) is committed to the transition through its own Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance (ESG).
The impacts of climate change on ecosystems, societies, and economies worldwide, as well as the growing environmental and human rights concerns have resulted in a fast-changing regulatory and competitive landscape, which is affecting our suppliers, our clients and us.
In response to these emerging risks and opportunities, we, at ABS, are committed to shaping appropriate solutions. We have, therefore, started defining a comprehensive ESG risk policy framework.
As part of this process, we have started identifying and assessing ESG risks arising out of or in connection with our activities, investment decisions and recommendations. This will help us understand and manage the potential adverse impacts of our activities and decisions on the environment, the communities in which we are active and society in general, as well as mitigate the associated risks affecting our clients and us.
These ESG risks can be defined as environmental, social or governance events or conditions, which are likely to have a material adverse impact on the value of our investments, our clients, people and the reputation of ABS.
In parallel, we are committed to defining and implementing procedures and tools designed to enable the identification, assessment and monitoring of those ESG risks, with a view to integrate them into our standard risk management, compliance, investment decision and operational processes.
Our ESG Investment Methodology
Arab Bank Switzerland adapts its investment methodologies depending on the client’s preference for ESG consideration within their portfolio. We use three levels of preference – neutral, sensitive or high – adapting the mandate accordingly.
Our ESG policy extends to the following areas of business policies and practices:
- Our client on-boarding process.
- Our transaction due diligence and investment decision making process for ESG oriented clients.
- The development and launch of new financial products and services: ESG risks associated with new financial products and services will be reviewed and assessed before their launch in order to assess their compatibility and consistency with our ESG objectives.
- Our day-to-day operations.
Overall, the adopted ESG framework allows us to allocate our clients assets within ESG oriented investment solutions helping them reaching their sustainable goals and contribute to the transition to a sustainable economy alongside ABS.
Learn more about our approach to ESG Investment:
ABS Foundation
We have formed the Arab Bank Switzerland Foundation for Sustainability with a clear mission to engage our clients and stakeholders within a framework of sustainable development goals.
