Citi, the leading global bank, on Thursday said it facilitated a total of $222 billion in sustainable finance activity globally between 2020 and 2021, which puts the company well on track to meet its $1 trillion commitment by 2030.
The bank stated this in its 2021 Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) report released on Thursday.
ESG report is an annual report that details Citi’s ongoing efforts to address some of society’s greatest challenges and build more sustainable, diverse and equitable communities around the world.
In early 2021, Citi made a $1 trillion commitment to sustainable finance, which includes a $500 billion goal for environmental finance and a $500 billion goal for social finance, aligning with the agenda of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.
Through the commitment, Citi is financing and facilitating a wide range of activities – from renewable energy and clean technology to healthcare and affordable housing – to further the acceleration to a sustainable, low-carbon economy that supports the environmental, social and economic needs of society.
“From COVID-19 and climate change to systemic racial inequity and a transformational war in Ukraine, we continue to see the need for businesses like Citi to step up and help address the global challenges facing our society,” said Jane Fraser, CEO, Citi. “The health of our business is inextricably linked with the health of our planet and our communities, and we cannot succeed at one without the other. At Citi, this sense of responsibility continues to shape our decisions, business strategy and firm-wide goals and commitments.”
Earlier this year, Citi unveiled its initial plan to reach net zero emissions by 2050, a commitment made on Jane Fraser’s first day as CEO in March 2021. The plan includes disclosure of Citi’s baseline financed emissions and ambitious 2030 targets for its Energy and Power loan portfolios – a 29 percent absolute eduction in financed emissions for the Energy sector and a 63 percent reduction in portfolio emissions intensity for the Power sector.
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The plan also introduces Citi’s Net Zero Transition Principles, which are guiding its net-zero efforts to drive a responsible and orderly transition that minimizes economic disruption while also contributing to broader sustainable development objectives. In 2021, Citi also co-founded the Net Zero Banking Alliance, which will help establish an industry framework for decarbonizing the banking sector.
Building on Citi’s long-standing expertise and commitment to advancing financial inclusion around the world, the company expanded the scope of its social finance efforts to support social initiatives in areas such as healthcare, education and basic infrastructure.
In 2021, Citi issued a first-of-its-kind $1 billion social finance bond to support social and economic development efforts that increase opportunity and access to essential basic services in emerging markets. As part of Citi’s social finance focus, the company aims to invest in opportunities for 15 million households, including 10 million women, globally by 2025.
As part of Action for Racial Equity, Citi and the Citi Foundation invested $1 billion in strategic initiatives, just one year into the three-year commitment. Through the $200 million Impact Fund, Citi directed 68 percent of its 2021 asset allocation to companies founded by women and/or racially/ethnically diverse founders, which supports the Fund’s goal to help combat the gender and racial/ethnic gaps that exist in venture capital.
Citi also launched new initiatives to embed racial equity across Citi’s business to better serve its clients and communities, including the recently launched Diverse Financial Institutions Group – a dedicated team at Citi to lead and expand firmwide engagement with minority depository institutions, diverse broker-dealers and diverse asset managers. In 2021, Citi also worked exclusively with five Black-owned firms to syndicate a $2.5 billion bond issuance.
In 2021, Citi provided $5.64 billion in loans for affordable housing projects, making Citi the top affordable housing development lender in the U.S. for the 12th consecutive year, as published by Affordable Housing Finance.
“Over the past year, we made meaningful strides toward achieving the commitments we’ve set, despite the uncertain and volatile period we are living through,” said Edward Skyler, head of global public affairs, Citi. “We know that ESG considerations will only become more prominent as all of our stakeholders increasingly prioritize the need for our bank to help chart a sustainable and equitable future. Whether it’s through our Impact Fund, our plan to reach net zero or the work we do to support communities wherever we do business, we’ll continue to look for new and innovative ways to put our balance sheet to good use.”
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