Insights
In the spring of 2024, we made our first policy assessment of the plastic-related policies of 20 internationally operating commercial banks. We selected banks that play a prominent role in financing companies in the global plastics lifecycle, including some banks that participate in the UNEP Finance Leadership Group on Plastics.
Based on our methodology, all banks received a score on a scale from 0 to 100. Based on these final scores, we grouped them into four categories: Leaders, Moderate achievers, Followers and Laggards. We found no Leaders.
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75-100
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50-74
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25-49
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0-24
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No data
Among the 20 banks, we identified one Moderate achiever: ProCredit Group. This is a smaller, German bank which is participating in the UNEP Finance Leadership Group on Plastics.
We identified also one Follower, the Dutch ING Group. This bank was selected because it plays a major role in financing petrochemical companies worldwide.
ProCredit clearly acknowledges the plastics problem and its own role in it and makes a clear commitment to support solutions for the plastics problem. The bank has made steps in translating this commitment into policies and with implementing these policies, but many topics are still insufficiently covered in its policies and implementation needs to be further strengthened.
ING acknowledges the plastics problem and makes a commitment to support solutions for the plastics problem. The bank has made some steps in translating this commitment into policies and implementing these policies, but many topics are still insufficiently covered in its policies, and implementation needs to be further strengthened.
The other 18 banks assessed are categorized as Laggard
This is because they all fail to acknowledge the plastics crisis and their own role in creating it, and do not make a clear commitment to support solutions for the plastics crisis.
Some banks, for example Mitsubishi UFJ and BNP Paribas, do have relevant policies in place on topics directly related to the plastics crisis. However, as these banks do not explicitly acknowledge the plastics crisis or make a commitment to help tackle it, it cannot be assumed that they strictly implement these policies in their financing relationships with companies in the plastics lifecycle.