RepoRt on - BNP Paribas

cetelem’s responsible lending approach
“complies with four commitments
that are fundamental to each
phase of the customer relationship, i.e.
the loan application, the arrangement
of the loan, the life of the loan and the
final repayment”. these commitments
are: combating excessive debt; seeking
to extend credit to the largest number
of people; helping each customer in a
flexible manner and assisting every customer
in difficulty.
more generally, the responsible lending
policy initiated in france from 2004 onward
has now been adjusted and implemented
in other countries like Portugal,
brazil, italy, Hungary and slovakia. these
efforts include:
— l a u n c h i n g w e b s i t e s l i k e
www.moncreditresponsable.com
to inform the general public;
— monitoring indicators like the refusal
rate and the proportion of loans
repaid in full;
— participating in conferences to
explain the social and economic role
of consumer credit;
— and marketing products and services
like cetelem’s “responsible loans”,
which have been available in france
since the third quarter of 2009.
bnp paribas Assurance: fairer
and broader access to insurance
bnP Paribas assurance makes it easier
for disabled people to access borrower
insurance, particularly people
suffering from paraplegia (1) . in france,
30,000 people suffer from paraplegia,
and around 2,000 new cases are
diagnosed each year. there has been a
great deal of research into paraplegia
in the last few years, resulting in better
understanding and improved support
for those affected. those suffering from
paraplegia, and from all disabilities,
play an increasingly integral role in society
and the world of work. the number
of disabled people in work has risen by
a factor of 16 in the last twenty years,
from 7,000 in 1987 to 111,000 in 2006.
(1) An impairment in motor or sensory function of the lower extremities.
to support the social integration of those
suffering from paraplegia and to help
them adjust, bnP Paribas assurance
has taken these figures into account
and changed its conditions for granting
borrower insurance as well as its pricing
structure. the company can now offer
better insurance terms to people suffering
from paraplegia.
as part of its efforts to improve access to
insurance for vulnerable people, and in
line with the spirit of the aeras convention,
bnP Paribas assurance is:
— continuing its in-depth studies into the
risks of paraplegia-related illnesses,
— planning to apply this approach to
other conditions like tetraplegia and
Parkinson’s disease in 2010,
— strengthening its position as a specialist
in elevated risks.
banking facilities and services
accessible to all
in addition to its regulatory obligations,
bnP Paribas is taking steps to help people
with reduced mobility access its
branches and atms. in france, 95% of
atms can be accessed by people with
reduced mobility, whereas the sector
average is 80%. the group has developed
a methodological guide in association
with a specialised consulting
firm, and gives the guide to all people
involved in building banking facilities
and installing atms. bnP Paribas’ new
accueil & services branch concept
includes features facilitating disabled
access. 850 bnP Paribas branches have
voice-controlled atms. this makes us the
first french bank to offer such services
to the visually impaired, enabling them
to withdraw money without assistance.
multi-channel banking provides all clients
with access to information and
banking services. clients always have
at least one remote channel – phone
or internet – available for day-to-day
transactions.
64 <strong>RepoRt</strong> on CoRpoRate SoCial and enviRonmental ReSponSibility
socially
responsible
investment
(sri)
socially responsible investment was for
a long time practised only by specialist
ethical investors. in the last few years,
however, sustainable development
has become a political and financial
reality. the recession has strengthened
the focus on sustainable development.
an increasing number of investors are
now looking for investments that meet
sustainable development objectives.
bnP Paribas investment Partners is supporting
this trend, and has developed
a broad range of products that meet
environmental, social and governance
(esg) criteria. they are managed
by various partners, i.e. bnP Paribas
asset management, impax asset
management, fundQuest and easyetf.
while each entity has its own research
and investment procedures, they share
a common understanding of customers’
needs and expectations.
to meet the specific expectations of
customers as regards responsible investing,
bnP Paribas asset management
implements investment strategies suited
to investors’ risk profiles, investment
timeframes and desired returns. socially
responsible investment is based on two
complementary strategies, which are
designed to meet customers’ specific
requirements, i.e. best-in-class strategies
and theme-based strategies.
best-in-class strategies
these strategies involve investing in companies,
organisations and countries
that display best practice as regards
environmental, social and governance
(esg) issues in all areas of the economy.
the esg analysis is designed to identify
sustainable development-related
issues that represent major risks and
opportunities. for example, the analysis
identifies companies with a proactive
Human resources department or an
ambitious co 2 emissions-reduction plan.
companies, organisations or countries
that do not comply with the principles
set out in the united nations global