Summit kicks off today to drive sustainability in financial sector

A three-day summit of the Global Alliance for Banking on Values (GABV), a network of 70 independent banks, credit unions and microfinance institutions from 43 countries, will begin in Dhaka today.

The event aims to facilitate the sharing of ideas and solutions for how the financial industry can drive sustainability.

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Directors of the world's leading sustainable banks will reiterate their strong commitment to values-based banking and stress on spreading the message for a sustainable and secure future across numerous communities and countries.

Brac Bank is hosting the conference at the Radisson hotel, where more than 50 delegates, particularly chief executive officers and managing directors of GABV members, will participate in the conference.

The theme of the conference is "From Perspectives to Action: Transformational Practice in Action". This is the second time the GABV is holding the annual summit in Bangladesh.

The event aims to facilitate the sharing of ideas and solutions for how the financial industry can drive sustainability

Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury, speaker of parliament, will attend the inaugural ceremony.

Selim RF Hussain, managing director and chief executive officer of Brac Bank, shared this information through a press conference yesterday.

Delegates will participate in several discussions that will touch on important transformation issues in the banking industry, the significance of values-based banking, decarbonisation, financial inclusion, microfinance, sustainability integration, human capital and organisational transformation.

They will observe Banking on Values Day on November 10, 2022 in a public event, where all members will join in person and virtually.

As a part of the conference, delegates will also meet Brac Bank customers who have set an exemplary benchmark in doing business sustainably.

"Brac Bank passionately works to make the environment cleaner and the Earth greener through responsible financing. We strive to contribute to reducing the carbon footprint of Bangladesh through green financing," Hussain said.

"We believe prosperity and the planet should march hand-in-hand as we continue our development journey. We will continue to work with the GABV to adopt the best practices and pursue values-based banking for a sustainable future," he added.

Pointing to how this is the first global in-person meeting since the outbreak of Covid-19, David Reiling, chief executive of Sunrise Banks (USA) and chair of the GABV, said they are coming together to discuss how to respond as a movement in the face of the multiple crises shaking the world.

"In a rapidly changing world, values-based banks have been able to adapt while staying focused on their mission and purpose. We differ from conventional banks, not in how we respond to external challenges but in our starting point, which dictates everything we do," he said.

Responding effectively to rapid and continuous change requires holistic approaches that consider the well-being of people and the planet.

"This is how members of the Global Alliance for Banking on Values understand banking as a force for good," Reiling added.

The GABV was founded in 2009 by 10 pioneer banks that believed in the need for a fairer, greener and more inclusive financial system.

Brac Bank is a founding member and the only bank representing Bangladesh in the global forum.

The GABV, currently made up of 70 pioneering banks, credit unions and microfinance institutions from across the world, advocates for banks to take a pivotal role in shaping the economy, society and the environment.

Members of the GABV have pioneered and helped expand initiatives like the Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials (PCAF), a harmonised open-source tool to measure and disclose the greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) of financial institutions' loans and investments.

The GABV was recently recognised as a Climate Leader by the Finance for the Future Awards and will participate in COP27 as an Observer NGO.