This is how we work with sustainability

Responsible lending is a very important topic in the Bank’s materiality analysis, and we have an impact analysis that analyses where the Bank’s contribution could have the greatest effect. The main thing for the corporate market is to focus on resource utilisation and greenhouse gas emissions when it comes to both reinforcing positive impacts and reducing negative impacts. Based on the impact analysis, our greatest focus is on real estate (commercial buildings for rent and development) and agriculture industries.

We usea number of measures to encourage customers to make sustainable changes, including:

• Excluding certain industries, as well as business practices with major negative impacts.
• Analysing sustainability risk and opportunities when processing applications for loans and credit facilities.
• Offering products or measures that encourage green restructuring.
• Requiring proof of improvment of energy efficiency and/or reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.

Read more in our annual report 2022, the chapter Responsible lending to the corporate market.

Responsible lending is one of the Bank’s five material topics within sustainability. It has been, and remains, an important part of the Bank’s social mission. This includes being a responsible actor that carries out sound due diligence assessments and credit ratings, offering loans with a social profile, as well as offering loans designed to stimulate sustainable and energy-efficient development.

Read more in our annual report 2022, the chapter Responsible lending to the retail market.

The Bank does not manage any funds of its own, instead we distribute a wide range of mutual funds provided by recognised portfolio managers. In our materiality analysis, financial suppliers are limited to portfolio managers whose funds have been accepted for redistribution through the Bank’s self-service and serviced channels. The Bank is an indirect co-owner of ODIN Fond and the SpareBank 1 funds via part ownership of SpareBank 1 Forvaltning AS.

Even though the Bank does not manage funds of its own, asset management is an area that has a big impact on all other sustainability topics. Therefore, the Bank can have an indirect impact on these via our fund providers. 2022 was a turbulent year for people with savings in funds and investors. However, from a long-term perspective, saving in funds and financial investments are becoming increasingly important with respect to our customers achieving their savings and investment goals.

Read more in our annual report 2022, the chapter Requirements for suppliers of financial services - asset management.

The scale of crime impacting the financial services sector is increasing and becoming increasingly complicated and complex. The Bank’s efforts to prevent and detect crime are therefore important from both a national and an international perspective.

Economic crime is a problem that impacts individuals, business and the economy. It can also have a major negative impact on individual banks. Like other banks, SpareBank 1 Østlandet has a legal duty to implement measures to prevent and detect money laundering and terrorist financing. The Bank also has extensive measures for continuously preventing and detecting other economic crime, particularly digital fraud. Both customers and society in general must have confidence that the Bank is being proactive in this area.

The threat picture is constantly changing and the Bank has to adapt its work to match developments. The work is challenging, resource-intensive and requires a high level of multidisciplinary expertise. We share what we know with other financial institutions and the authorities, and encourage customers to be more vigilant to ensure they are not deceived.

See the chapter Combating Economic Crime in our annual report 2022.

Ethics and anti-corruption is one of the Bank’s five material sustainability topics. This is important for both internal and external stakeholders.

SpareBank 1 Østlandet lives in a mutually dependent relationship with those around us. We depend on the trust of customers, investors, partners, organisations and the authorities. Trust is also important within the Group. The purpose of our work on ethics and anti-corruption is to protect this trust. This is how we will strengthen our relationships with those around us, build financial strength, ensure we have financial muscle, and further enhance our good reputation. We tolerate no form of conduct that could be perceived as bribery, corruption or attempts to improperly influence decision-making processes. Our conduct and decisions must be based on the Bank’s strategy and corporate social responsibility and sustainability goals.

See the chapter Ethics and anti-corruption in our annual report 2022.

By focusing on ethical marketing, the Bank wants to ensure that we are providing good, simple, verifiable and understandable information about our products and services. We also focus heavily on avoiding greenwashing, which is when someone presents a product as eco-friendly or climate-friendly without an adequatebasis for making such a claim.

See the chapter Ethical marketing of products and services in our annual report 2022.

As part of its liquidity management, SpareBank 1 Østlandet has a portfolio of liquid securities with a high credit quality. The Bank has implemented social and sustainability assessments in its liquidity management in order to evaluate and minimise the risk of the liquidity portfolio conflicting with the Bank’s guidelines for corporate social responsibility and sustainability.

See the chapter Responsible lending within liquidity management in our annual report 2022.

SpareBank 1 Østlandet shall contribute to green competitiveness and sustainable value creation in cooperation with customers and relevant partners. We work continuously in house to save resources and become an environmentally efficient organisation.

SpareBank 1 Østlandet shall not contribute to serious environmental damage, including extensive emissions of greenhouse gases and irreversible damage to vulnerable areas, ecosystems or groups of individuals.

Our core business of lending to customers and investing their money has a primary focus on the environment and climate.

For retail banking customers, we offer green mortgages (in Norwegian) for environmentally friendly and energy-saving measures in new and old homes, holiday homes and cottages. The loan has a very favourable interest rate for people who choose environmentally friendly solutions, whether they are building new homes, renovating or simply switching to more environmentally friendly energy sources.

In the corporate market, the Bank wants to stimulate green business development. We also aim to increase the proportion of companies that contribute to the increased use of renewable energy. 

Read more in our Corporate Sustainability Guidelines for the Corporate Market

SpareBank 1 Østlandet does not run its own securities fund management, but distributes securities funds from other fund managers. See Guidelines for the Responsible Distribution of Securities Funds in SpareBank 1.

Digitalisation reduces environmental impact

Digitalisation strongly contributes to us being able to work continuously to provide our customers with optimal and effective digital solutions. Digital products and services reduce the impact on the environment. Mortgages on the web, mobile banking, Vipps, video conferences, text messaging services and the electronic distribution of letters and publications are measures that reduce transport needs and paper consumption. News distribution is now done electronically on the web pages NTB Kommunikasjon (press releases) and via the Bank's news centre.

Energy and climate accounts

SpareBank 1 Østlandet measures and reports on energy use and climate emissions annually in accordance with the international standard A Corporate Accounting and Reporting Standard, which is developed by the Greenhouse Gas Protocol Initiative - the GHG protocol. This is the most widely-used method worldwide to measure greenhouse gas emissions. The account covers consumption hat leads to greenhouse gas emissions such as travel, waste management and energy consumption. By conducting this survey, the Bank identifies which sources affect the external environment, and we can implement concrete measures to minimise them. 

See energy and climate in our business operations, and science based targets in our annual report 2022.

Eco-lighthouse certified

The Eco-lighthouse is one of Norway's most used certificates for businesses that want to document environmental efforts and corporate social responsibility. SpareBank 1 Østlandet is Eco-lighthouse certified and complies with the obligations contained in the certification scheme. This means that we report our own energy consumption and climate emissions each spring to the Eco-lighthouse Foundation. The certification entails systematic, goal-oriented and continuous improvement within the areas of the work environment, purchasing, waste management, transport, energy consumption, emissions and aesthetics. 

There is quite frequently a need for changes in the product offerings from SpareBank 1 Østlandet.

These changes can be driven by the customer itself, technological and/or regulatory matters. A thorough process in advance of these changes/releases is necessary due to the increased operational risk involved. Based on this, a policy for new (or updates of existing) products, systems or processes have been implemented.

The purpose of the policy is to secure that the major changes will be done through a consistent and sufficient risk assessment prior to launch. The policy should contribute to the fulfillment of regulatory requirements concerning products, including “EBA guidelines on product oversight and governance arrangements for retail banking products” and “ESMA Guidelines on MiFID II product governance requirements”.

The policy should secure that products are designed and marketed to an extent that;

(i) consumer interests, targets and characteristics are considered,

(ii) potential damage for consumers are avoided and

(iii) conflicts of interests are minimized.

There are routines in place to ensure that customers and/or other stakeholders are given the possibility to send disputes/complaints to SpareBank 1 Østlandet.

There is an internal appeal board consisting of representatives from the Bank´s Risk Management department & the Legal department. The appeal board is given 3 weeks to review and to conclude in each case. The appeal board is seeking a thorough and uniformed review of each case to ensure sufficient consumer protection in accordance to the guidelines given from the Financial Supervision in Norway.

In accordance to the Board of Director´s mandate an audit plan is defined on a yearly basis. This is to ensure that the audit plan gives a sufficient review of the group governance, risk- and capital allocation, internal control and compliance in accordance to the audit mandate and regulatory matters.

The new business strategy for 2022-2025 focuses even more heavily on the organisation and employees. We want to create a generous and engaging working environment in which job enthusiasm, mutual respect and skills are key factors.

See the chapter Our greatly skilled employees in our annual report 2022, and additional information in the appendix Further facts about Organisation and HR. 

Please see "working conditions" above.

The Bank has a responsibility to safeguard labour and human rights, the environment and society in all of our supply chains. This is further strengthened through the new Transparency Act, which obliges us to conduct due diligence assessments in supply chains.

Read more in Requirements for other suppliers - sustainable procurement in our annual report 2022.

Guidelines for sustainability in procurement