Can gulf banks lead the charge in sustainable finance?

By Puja Sharma

Boubyan Bank has released its 2024 Annual Sustainability Report, reflecting the bank’s commitment to advancing environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) practices and embedding sustainability values across all its operations. The report underscores the bank’s efforts towards shaping a more inclusive and sustainable future to drive positive and true change, demonstrating its genuine commitment to responsible development.

The report highlighted Boubyan’s continued progress in line with a crystal-clear strategy that aligns with the best international practices. Prepared in accordance with the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Sustainability Reporting Standards 2021, this report incorporates additional frameworks such as the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB), and International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) S1 and S2, thus reinforcing the bank’s unwavering dedication to transparency, solid governance, and creating sustained value for stakeholders, and ultimately supporting Kuwait’s goals in achieving sustained development.

In his message, Bader Saad Al-Hashel, Boubyan Bank’s Chief Risk Officer, stated: “At Boubyan, we believe that governance is more than just an organisational framework; rather, it is an ongoing commitment that reinforces equality, transparency, and integrity in all our practices. We continue safeguarding shareholders’ rights, and ensure effective engagement of all stakeholders, thus reflecting our commitment to offering sustainable value on the long run.”

He went on to add: “Our commitment to governance extends to adoption of the best disclosure and transparency standards in our information and risk management practices, while focusing on building an operational environment that boosts the bank’s resilience and its ability to perform. Hence, we always stress that such practices stand as a key pillar for achieving our sustainability goals, as we endeavor to reinforce the bank’s core business and improve our customer satisfaction levels in order to offer the best service levels.”

“Boubyan continues to build a diverse work environment to implement inclusion and equality standards, providing equal opportunities for all talents. Investing in human capital is a key pillar for ensuring business sustainability and strengthening the bank’s ability to adapt to future changes with stability and resilience.”, A-Hashel emphasised.

On his part, Khaled Abdulwahab Al-Haqqan, Executive Manager – Business Continuity and Sustainability, said: “We are proud that 2024 marked a milestone in our journey towards achieving a meaningful impact of ESG practices. We have continued our efforts to reinforce sustainability concepts both within and beyond the bank, as we have set more comprehensive KPIs to measure our performance, in addition to adopting practical solutions to reduce emissions and reinforce recycling practices, and to empower our staff and their effective contribution to the development of the society.”

He went on to add: “We were keen to develop environmental sustainability implementation tools in line with international standards that we have successfully translated into real-world initiatives such as the installation of electric vehicle charging stations and scaling up our recycling efforts, in addition to adopting smart solutions to reduce resource consumption, along with a number of impactful community initiatives and programs that reinforce Boubyan’s role in the society across various segments. These steps will contribute to building a more environmentally aware and responsible banking future.”

 Environmental Sustainability

Within efforts to preserve the environment, the bank achieved 100% recycling of paper waste, advancing efforts to measure and reduce generated waste in line with well-devised approaches. The bank further avoided 34.16 tonnes of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, as part of its efforts to lower its carbon footprint.

The bank maintained its support of the transformation to green energy in order to preserve the environment by installing 22 electric vehicle charging stations at Boubyan HQ in Kuwait, highlighting the bank’s vision to promote environmental awareness and commitment to sustainability.

 Inclusiveness and Diversity to Support Human Resources

Speaking of human capital, the report highlighted Boubyan’s keenness to ensure high employee engagement and satisfaction as high as 100%, while increasing female representation to 25% of the total workforce to foster a diverse and inclusive work place.

Moreover, within the bank’s efforts to support inclusion, the bank hired a number of employees with special needs, in addition to continuing to increase Kuwaitization rates which now stand at 81% across general employment grades, and exceed 75% at leadership levels, thus reinforcing the bank’s commitment to boosting and developing national leadership.

CSR and Customer Satisfaction

The bank invested also in community initiatives and volunteering activities as well as training and financial awareness programs. Moreover, the bank continued to focus on its community role and CSR initiatives through the various domains supported by the bank, in addition to its various contributions, volunteer, and charitable efforts, through which the bank seeks to confirm the need for the participation of the private sector in order to ensure sustainability across various business areas.

In terms of customer experience, the bank scored well, as it achieved an Overall Customer Satisfaction of 96% and attained a Net Promoter Score (NPS) of 73%, demonstrating strong customer advocacy and the robust relationship built by the bank with its customers and its ongoing recognition of their expectations and needs.

To reinforce its status as a responsible financial institution, Boubyan continued enhancing its IFRS S1 and S2 readiness, with the launch of the Sustainable Finance Framework, aimed at directing financing towards projects with substantial environmental and social impact, which aligns well with the principles of the Noble Islamic Sharia.