Sustainability is a key aspect of a bank’s strategy and a driver of competitive advantage. Focusing on UN priorities such as climate, nature and human rights, explore how the PRB’s Responsible Banking Journey helps banks increase operational resilience, ensure institutional future-proofing, and realise commercial growth – whilst driving positive change for both people and planet.
Vision for a Responsible Banking Sector
PRB Responsible Banking Journey
With Assessment, Strategy and Action as cornerstones, the PRB Responsible Banking Journey is a visual representation of the ambitious, continuous progress that signatories make as they advance from foundational to leading practice. It inspires and informs responsible banking leadership, guiding members’ sustainability path more concretely, whilst also taking into account their unique regulatory, regional and commercial contexts.
Click to enlarge Journey visual
Priorities for Responsible Banking
The UN recognises climate, nature and biodiversity, healthy and inclusive economies and human rights as the fundamental priorities that support and accelerate a positive global transition. PRB signatories progressing through their Responsible Banking Journey are encouraged to adopt circular economy and just transition as enabling approaches to address the four priority areas in an integrated manner.
Click to enlarge Priorities visual
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Responsible Banking Journey Cornerstones
Integrating four interconnected priority areas – Climate, Nature, Human Rights and Healthy & Inclusive Economies – the PRB helps banks to understand and navigate risks, opportunities and impacts, contributing to related national and international sustainability goals. Guiding banks from any starting point and level of maturity, the PRB provides a 360-degree framework that enables banks to take action and make progress against the environmental and social sustainability priorities relevant for their bank. The three cornerstones of the PRB’s Responsible Banking Journey – Assessment, Strategy and Action – support banks as they continuously advance from foundational steps through to leading practice.
Explore each of the tabs below to learn more about the PRB Framework’s Assessment, Strategy and Action cornerstones.
Assessment – Creating value for shareholders, people and planet
Analyzing impact, risks and opportunities, as well as measuring and monitoring progress, is essential for responsible banking. In this stage, banks conduct a thorough portfolio analysis to understand impacts of key financed sectors on global, regional and national sustainability priorities. Monitoring and transparently reporting their findings, banks identify greatest positive and negative impacts, forming a baseline for acting upon areas where the greatest change can be achieved.
Explore the elements of the Assessment cornerstone below:
- Teams/functions: Sustainability, strategy, data/IT
- Guidance: Impact Protocol 2025
- Resource: Impact Mappings
- Tools: Impact Analysis Tools
- Resource: PRB Case Study Video Highlights
- Teams/functions: Strategy, communications, sustainability, investor relations
- Guidance: Responsible Banking Progress Statement for PRB Signatories
- Resource: Individual feedback and support process
- Resource: PRB Progress Statement for Signatories template
- Resource: ESRS Interoperability Package
- Resource: PRB Case Study Video Highlights
- Workstreams on impact work
- Webinars on key concepts, deep dives for business and corporate banking, impact resources
- Onboarding workshops for impact analysis
- Workshops on climate risk assessment and greenhouse gas measurement
- Bank of Jiangsu: Advancing Green Finance through Innovative Solutions
- Commercial International Bank: Integrating Local Priorities with Sustainable Banking
- Danske Bank: Strategic Integration of Sustainability and Stakeholder Engagement
- ING: Driving Impact Through Client Engagement
- Itaú Unibanco: Advancing Governance, Climate Action, and Sustainable Finance
- Vancity: Advancing Sustainability through Climate Action and Financial Inclusion
Strategy – Focus where it matters most
Strategic sustainability management is crucial for managing impact and risks, seizing market opportunities and aligning with key frameworks. Responsible banks develop and translate their sustainability ambition into measurable targets, in line with scientific findings and effective practices in the market. They also establish essential governance structures to ensure accurate consideration of the impact and opportunities of sustainability action within its financing activities.
Explore the elements of the Strategy cornerstone below:
- Teams/functions: C-suite, strategy, sustainability, business and risk teams
- Guidance: Principles for Responsible Banking
- Guidance: UN Responsible Banking Priorities
- Resource: PRB Case Study Video Highlights
- Teams/functions: Strategy, governance, compliance, process management
- Guidance: Guidance on Effective Governance
- Resource: PRB Case Study Video Highlights
- Teams/functions: Sustainability, strategy, business development, controlling, governance, risk and Human Resources
- Guidance: Guidance for Climate Target Setting for Banks – Version 3
- Guidance: Climate Adaption Target Setting
- Guidance: Foundations of Climate Mitigation Target Setting
- Guidance: PRB Nature Target Setting Guidance
- Guidance: Advancing Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment: Target Setting Guidance for Banks
- Guidance: Driving Impact on Financial Health and Inclusion of Individuals and Businesses: From Setting Targets to Implementation
- Resource: PRB Case Study Video Highlights
- Workstreams on decent work, circular economy, pollution
- Workshops on target setting for nature, climate, financial health & inclusion, energy efficiency
- Capacity building on human rights, nature, healthy & inclusive economies
- Programme for regulatory implementation support
- Course from PRB Academy for executives
- Individual review meetings for PRB signatory banks
- Access Bank: Driving Inclusive Growth through Responsible Banking
- BAC: Catalyzing Community Prosperity and a Net-Positive Future
- Bank of Jiangsu: Advancing Green Finance through Innovative Solutions
- Commercial International Bank: Integrating Local Priorities with Sustainable Banking
- Itaú Unibanco: Advancing Governance, Climate Action, and Sustainable Finance
- MUFG: Advancing Sustainability in the Real Economy by Supporting Customer Transitions
- National Bank of Canada: Contributing to a Sustainable Future Through Green Commercial Real Estate and Renewable Energy
Action – Supporting clients, financing change
Banks’ action or transition plans outline the measures their organization will take to achieve their targets, including defining policies and process, working with clients and customers, leveraging stakeholder and partner relationships and proactively steering the portfolio composition to scale up financing for the sustainability transition. Strategic delivery of transition and action plans is vital to improving bank performance, mitigating risk, enhancing market reputation, driving competitive advantage and fostering a culture of innovation and creativity.
Explore the elements of the Action cornerstone below:
- Teams/functions: Governance, process management, compliance, human resources, risk management, back office, data/IT
- Guidance: UN Responsible Banking Blueprint
- Guidance: Principles for Responsible Banking Journey
- Guidance: Climate Mitigation Journey
- Resource: PRB Case Study Video Highlights
- Teams/functions: Governance, process management, compliance, human resources, risk management, back office, data/IT
- Guidance: Guidance on Effective Governance
- Resource: PRB Case Study Video Highlights
- Teams/functions: Front office, business development, risk management and controlling, treasury, investor relations
- Guidance: UN Responsible Banking Blueprint
- Guidance: PRB Implementation Journey
- Resource: PRB Case Study Video Highlights
- Teams/functions: Sales, business development, investor relations, front office
- Guidance: Guidance on Client Engagement
- Resource: PRB Case Study Video Highlights
- Teams/functions: Regulatory and policy affairs, sustainability, communications, strategy, investor relations
- Guidance: Advancing Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment: Target Setting Guidance for Banks
- Guidance: Guidance on Responsible Policy Engagement
- Resource: PRB Case Study Video Highlights
- Workstream on client engagement
- Work track convening key actors to address barriers in the clients and customers
- Toolkit for Human Rights offering policy commitment insights, due diligence processes, guidance on stakeholder engagement
- Case studies from members on peer to peer sustainable practice
- Course from PRB Academy on clients and customers
- Access Bank: Driving Inclusive Growth through Responsible Banking
- BAC: Catalyzing Community Prosperity and a Net-Positive Future
- Commercial International Bank: Integrating Local Priorities with Sustainable Banking
- Danske Bank: Strategic Integration of Sustainability and Stakeholder Engagement
- ING: Driving Impact Through Client Engagement
- Itaú Unibanco: Advancing Governance, Climate Action, and Sustainable Finance
- MUFG: Advancing Sustainability in the Real Economy by Supporting Customer Transitions
- National Bank of Canada: Contributing to a Sustainable Future Through Green Commercial Real Estate and Renewable Energy
- Vancity: Advancing Sustainability through Climate Action and Financial Inclusion
Key Resources
- UN Principles for Responsible Banking: The full Principles for Responsible Banking framework in detail.
- UN Principles for Responsible Banking Journey: Showcasing how the PRB supports a responsible banking journey of continuous ambition, progress and evolution
- UN Responsible Banking Progress Statement: Consolidates a bank’s reporting into a strategic, short-form executive summary which focuses on monitoring, assessment and communication of progress.
- UN Responsible Banking Priorities: Four inter-related fundamental priorities that banks can work across to support and accelerate a positive global transition for people and planet.
- UN Responsible Banking Blueprint: A guide of actions banks can take across the UN Responsible Banking Priorities to move from foundational steps to leading practice.