TSKB Joins Net-Zero Banking Alliance
TSKB became a signatory of the Net-Zero Banking Alliance, established by the United Nations Environment Program Finance Initiative (UNEP FI). TSKB has committed to align its loan and investment portfolio with zero-emission targets by 2050 and will support its business partners and customers in reducing carbon emissions.
TSKB (Industrial Development Bank of Türkiye), which stands out with its climate-friendly banking approach, announced a new global commitment as a signatory of the Net-Zero Banking Alliance (NZBA) established by the United Nations Environment Program Finance Initiative (UNEP FI).
In collaboration with the NZBA, the Bank will transition its loan and investment portfolio with net-zero emission targets by 2050, in alignment with the 1.5oC ambition of the Paris Agreement. Following transparent, responsible and science-based guidelines in its journey of sustainable banking, TSKB will continue to set its targets before 2030 in line with the Net-Zero Banking framework and set an example for the sector.
TSKB CEO Murat Bilgiç: "We have made a significant progress by including our loans in carbon-intensive sectors within our emission calculations"
TSKB CEO Murat Bilgiç stated that they are pleased to further the long-standing partnership of targets between UNEP FI and TSKB and added: “The fight against climate change and climate adaptation are among our most important strategic focus areas. After becoming a member of the UNEP FI platform in 2009, we joined as a founding signatory to the Principles for Responsible Banking launched by this important initiative in 2019. In 2021, we published Türkiye's first Climate Risks Report in finance sector as part of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD). We are now integrating the measurement of climate risks into our credit processes. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are at the heart of all our activities. The weight of our SDG-related loans in the total portfolio stands at 93%. The ratio of our loans contributing to climate and environment-related SDGs stands at 61%. We have made a significant progress by including our loans in carbon-intensive sectors within our emission calculations that were audited last year. These projects account for approximately 70% of the emissions realized through financing and 7.5% of our total portfolio."
Murat Bilgiç: "We are ready to support our business partners in reducing their carbon emissions with a structured approach"
Noting that as a member of the NZBA, TSKB will further accelerate their efforts to combat the global climate crisis, Bilgiç said: "We have been reducing to zero our emissions arising from our in-bank operations since 2008 and using green energy in all our premises. We are now committed to aligning our emissions from our loan and investment portfolios with the net-zero emissions target by 2050. In the next 18 months, we will focus our 2030 targets on carbon-intensive sectors. In the next 36 months, we will set our targets for all sectors. We will set our strategies with interim targets, which will be updated every 5 years, and take decisive steps towards 2030 and 2050. The entire world is at a crucial crossroads. We need concrete climate-focused solutions and cooperation now more than ever. As we transform our organizations, we must also take responsibility for the transformation of our stakeholders. As TSKB, we are ready to support our business partners in reducing their carbon emissions with a structured approach, starting with our customers.
The Net-Zero Banking Alliance brings together 119 banks from 41 countries under the umbrella of the United Nations, currently representing approximately 40% of global banking assets, which have committed to align their loan and investment portfolios with net-zero emissions by 2050. In the light of its globally recognized framework and guidelines, the Alliance supports the effective and rapid implementation of the decarbonization strategies of its leading signatory banks. The NZBA also leads the banking activities of the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero and the climate focused accelerator of the Principles for Responsible Banking.
