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Sustainability is everyone’s responsibility

    
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JanJuchelka

Jan Juchelka, CEO, Komercni banka

Since its beginning, the third decade of the 21st century has been marked by an increasing awareness of the need for sustainable behaviour, and not just from businesses, but from every individual, in all areas of life. As a financial institution, Komercni banka will continue to fully align sustainability trends within the principles of its business and commercial activities.

What steps is Komercni banka taking to forward its sustainability agenda?

We count among the financial institutions that have openly committed to promote environmental and socially responsible business practices in the Czech Republic, and we have recently signed the Czech Banking Association’s Memorandum for Sustainable Business. We have also set our own commitment to become carbon neutral by 2026. Responsible and sustainable business is part of Komercni banka‘s 2025 strategic plan. In addition to our active contribution to slowing climate change, we will also be an initiator and inspirer for others. We believe that banks are the driving force not only for the economy in general, but also for promoting sustainability.

What are your sustainability targets?

We were the first company in the Czech Republic to be included in the FTSE4Good index that assesses good practice in environment, social policy and corporate governance. Our strategic ambition is to be a leader in sustainable investment in the Czech financial market and within SG Group, and to be seen as a green bank in the Czech Republic. I am confident that we will accomplish this task in full. We think about how our branches and our clients’ preferences will in the future play an important role in this.

Ambitious steps require sufficient finance. Are you ready?

I consider it an indisputable advantage that we, like our parent group Société Générale, are a business entity operating in a member country of the European Union (EU). We can therefore contribute to the EU’s environmental and social commitments translated into its objectives for the 2021-2027 programme period. Our clients can, among other things, continue to count on EU financial support to finance their environmentally sound projects. I would add that SG Group has adopted its own targets to support this agreement. At the same time, SG Group is committed to increasing the volume of investment dedicated to the transition to renewable energy sources to EUR120 billion between 2019 and 2023.

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