Cairo, Egypt – Commercial International Bank (CIB) - Egypt, Egypt’s leading private sector bank, announced today its support for the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) recommendations for helping businesses disclose climate-related financial information. This important step comes in line with the Bank’s efforts to support local and global practices and take precautionary measures to mitigate climate change risks in the short, medium, and long term, in addition to financing new projects aiming to reduce and adapt to greenhouse effects.
CIB is the first Egyptian bank to join this initiative, which goes hand in hand with Egypt’s goal to transform into a green economy, aligning with Egypt Vision 2030, Paris Climate Agreement, and UN SDGs.
“CIB is at the forefront of international financial institutions concerned with climate-related financial disclosures to avoid material risks resulting from global warming,” said Hussein Abaza, CIB’s Chief Executive Officer. “It is our priority to protect the rights of shareholders and investors and safeguard our customers’ businesses while raising awareness about the risks and opportunities presented by climate change,” he added.
In light of the Bank expressing its support for the TCFD, CIB will disclose information on financial risks and opportunities related to climate change to financial markets, investors, lenders, and stakeholders, ensuring transparency and strengthening confidence in CIB locally and internationally.
“The Bank recognizes the relationship between climate change and financial stability, resulting in our support for the TCFD recommendations to improve CIB’s risk management system and increase social and environmental opportunities,” said Dr. Dalia Abdel Kader, Chief Sustainability Officer at CIB. “Financial disclosure requires gaining expertise to assess climate change scenarios and determine their impact on the Bank’s investments and credit portfolio,” she added. “For this reason, a team from CIB’s Risk Department joined a working group under the supervision of the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) to learn the mechanisms and requirements for disclosure.”
CIB’s comprehensive Environmental and Social Risk Management System (ESRM) works according to the latest international standards, including the International Finance Corporation (IFC) Performance Standards, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) Performance Requirements, and the Equator Principles, to protect the Bank’s credit portfolio and support customers.
CIB announced its support for the TCFD recommendations in light of increasing climate-related financial risks. According to the World Economic Forum’s 2021 Global Risks Report, failure to mitigate climate change is one of the world’s biggest threats for the third year in a row. The report states that climate change inaction is considered a threat to humankind.
Since the banking sector plays a role in achieving sustainable development, it is necessary to determine the financial, operational, and market risks of climate change, in addition to risks related to the local and global legislative environment resulting from potential changes in local, regional, and international laws in accordance to global agreements. It is also important to identify the medium- and long-term risks of climate change on the credit rating of countries around the world.
CIB is currently implementing a capacity-building program to prepare climate-related disclosures in cooperation with UNEP FI.