Banking Overview
How much do you know about your bank? Do you know what type of businesses it lends to?
Does it refuse to lend to companies with poor human rights records, that sell arms or pollute the environment, for example? Does your bank offer services to those on low incomes or the unemployed? And how many women sit on its board?
Such questions often go unasked of the banking sector. But the same caring principles that make you buy Fairtrade goods and recycle household waste can be applied to how you bank too.
Key green and ethical issues to consider
Finding a green or ethical banking option
How banks use your money
The money that you deposit in your current or savings account doesn't just sit there untouched until you require it again - your bank lends it on to others at interest.
Banks don't just lend money to current account-holding customers either, they lend to large corporations, public institutions and even governments.
As many banks are listed on the stock exchange, they are answerable to external shareholders who expect healthy returns on their investments.
While the Treasury hands down some prohibitions as to who banks can and can't do business with, it still leaves them relatively free to engage with companies that you might not approve of and they use your money to do it.
Would you approve if your bank was lending money to heavy polluting industries or even to an oppressive regime?
Key green and ethical issues to consider
Responsible Lending
The recent global economic downturn is often attributed to the 'sub prime crisis'.
Sub prime lending means giving loans to people who are considered to be in higher risk categories - those more likely to default or who have a poor credit history, for example.
This type of lending is not problematic in itself - credit unions and community development finance institutions regularly lend to sub prime candidates. Instead, irresponsible lending to customers in the sub prime category is the problem.
In the build up to the 'crunch' some financial institutions were lending 100% mortgages (and in some cases more) to people who would not be able to make their repayments in the long term.
Lending responsibly shouldn't be limited to just mortgages - it applies to all loans, big and small, and to the provision of credit cards too. Figures from the Bank of England show that UK residents owe £233bn on credit cards, overdrafts and other loans.
Key questions to ask: Does your bank have responsible lending policies that ensure that its products are targeted in an appropriate manner? And does it provide advice or debt management services to customers who fall into financial difficulty?
Climate Change and the Environment
Banks have an impact in these areas, not just in terms of who they lend to or invest in, but how they run their own operations. It is important to find out what your bank is doing to improve its environmental performance as a business: have they pledged to go carbon neutral for example? Or do they offer any green products to their customers?
Financial Exclusion
There are an estimated two million people in the UK without even the most basic bank account. Is your bank doing anything to address this situation?
For more details see our Financial Exclusion section.
Project Finance
In its most basic form, this type of financing is for companies and governments where lenders are repaid through the revenues generated, i.e. the lender has a vested interest in the success of a project.
Common projects receiving finance are petrochemical and chemical plants, power plants, telecommunications and infrastructure. But do lenders ensure that these projects are conducted in a green or ethical way?
Use our search facility to find out about your bank's policy on the environment, ethical lending, responsibility towards its customers, equal opportunities and other issues.
Finding a green or ethical banking option
Building Societies and Credit Unions
Mutual building societies and credit unions are generally smaller, customer-owned operations that primarily lend to individuals and so are less likely to have the same exposure to issues like the arms trade, for example.
Green and Ethical Alternatives
There are a number of banks and building societies with prominent green and ethical credentials.
- Co-operative Bank: this bank's robust green and ethical policies govern its current accounts, savings and investment products.
- Smile: this internet arm of the Co-operative Bank shares the parent company's ethical policy.
- Triodos Bank: this bank offers green and ethical savings accounts and investments. The bank was established in 1980 in the Netherlands and now has significant operations in the UK.
- Ecology Building Society: this mutual building society offers a range of green savings accounts and mortgage options.
- Charity Bank: this bank invests through loans to benefit charities and communities. It offers saving accounts and cash ISAs to consumers.
You can use the banking section search to find the banks that perform best against our green and ethical criteria.
Your next steps
What do you do now? Check out our guide Next Steps - Banking for information on how to give your bank account a green and ethical makeover.
Useful links to know
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) regulates the financial services industry in the UK. The FCA aims to protect consumers, ensure the industry remains stable and promote healthy competition between financial services providers. The FCA has a useful guide to your banking rights. Visit www.fca.org.uk or call the FCA consumer hotline 0800 111 6768 for more information on your rights and the FCA's work.
The Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) www.bankofengland.co.uk is part of the Bank of England and is responsible for the prudential regulation and supervision of banks, building societies, credit unions, insurers and investment firms. It supervises financial institutions at the level of the individual firm.
The Financial Ombudsman Service www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk is a service set up by the UK Parliament to sort out individual complaints that consumers and financial businesses are not able to sort out themselves.
Banking Search
| Please click on any of the financial institutions below to find out more |  |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Financial Institutions |
Criteria | |||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
11 | |||||||||
|
Allied Irish Bank (GB) and Allied Irish Bank (GB) Savings Direct |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
9 | ||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
11 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
25 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
10 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
30 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
17 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
30 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
17 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
18 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
22 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
27 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
30 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
23 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
16.7 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
17 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
18 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
31 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
33 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
25 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
9 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
10 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
30 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
27 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
25 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
14 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
17 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
30 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
0 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
0 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
30 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
20 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
33 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
16.7 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
18.1 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
33.3 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
27 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
40 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
9.1 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
25 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
25 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
18 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
30 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
11.1 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
17 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
20 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
30 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
33.3 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
33.3 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
14.3 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
10 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
16.7 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
27 | |||||||||
Bank / Building Society Profile
ING Direct (renamed Barclays Direct)
Green/Ethical Products
No evidence of specifically green or ethical products found.
Ethical Lending or Insurance
Not applicable ING Direct (renamed Barclays Direct) does not offer commercial lending or insurance services.
Human Rights
Not applicable ING Direct (renamed Barclays Direct) does not offer commercial lending or insurance services.
Financial Exclusion
No policies found for ING Direct (renamed Barclays Direct) however Barclays Bank, of which ING Direct (renamed Barclays Direct) is now a division, has the following:
- Basic bank cash accounts for low-income customers.
- A bank account specifically for community savings groups in Uganda (Africa), such as Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLA), which enable members from local communities to access and safely deposit their money.
- Finance for social housing (UK).
- Preferential lending (Africa; India; UK and international students; women, ethnic minorities and disabled persons in the UK).
Barclays supports credit unions through partnership with the Association of British Credit Unions Limited (ABCUL) and the Community Development Finance Association (CDFA). The bank reports that it has invested over £3m since 2004 in the UK community finance sector, supporting more than 100 individual credit unions and Community Development Finance Institutions (CDFIs).
Barclays reports that in 2010 it worked with disability consultants to design accessible and user friendly payment machines in the UK.
Barclay’s works in microfinance extends from supporting Community Development Finance Institutions (CDFIs) and credit unions in the UK, to indigenous microfinance systems in Africa.
Barclays is involved with The Banking on Change initiative, which is a partnership with CARE and Plan to deliver savings-led community finance projects in 11 countries across Africa, Asia and South America. The Absa Micro Enterprise Finance unit at Barclays' subsidiary in South Africa, is dedicated to helping low-income individuals and develop income-generating activities.
Environment
No environmental policy found for ING Direct (renamed Barclays Direct) however Barclays Bank, of which ING Direct (renamed Barclays Direct) is now a division, has an environmental policy which covers the key areas of climate change/energy efficiency, water and waste management.
Demonstrates a commitment to continued improvement of its environmental performance.
Carbon Neutral
ING Group's (ING Direct UK’s original parent company) operations have been carbon neutral since 2007. However Barclays is not carbon neutral and there is no information on whether ING Direct (renamed Barclays Direct) is still carbon neutral.
Equal Opportunities
No diversity policy found for ING Direct (renamed Barclays Direct) however Barclays Bank, of which ING Direct (renamed Barclays Direct) is now a division has a diversity policy which takes into consideration the key equality issues of race, gender, sexuality, and disability.
Women on the Board
Parent Company:
2/12 women hold top level board positions (17%).
Voluntary Standards & Initiatives
ING Direct (Barclays Direct) participates in the “CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme” which is aimed at improving energy efficiency and cutting emissions in large public and private sector organisations.
No others found for ING Direct (renamed Barclays Direct) however Barclays Bank, of which ING Direct (renamed Barclays Direct) is now a division, is a member of or signatory to the following relevant charter or initiatives:
- Equator Principles
- Carbon Disclosure Project
- Business Leaders Initiative on Human Rights (an initiative that took place between March 2003 and March 2009)
- United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI)
- The Wolfsberg Group
- The CBI Climate Change Task Force
- The Banking Environment Initiative
- The London Benchmarking Group (LBG) (a group of over 100 companies working together to measure Corporate Community Investment).
- Banking Environment Initiative of the University of Cambridge (convened in 2010 to identify ways in which banks can collectively redirect capital away from environmentally damaging activities towards environmentally beneficial ones, including sustainable, low carbon growth)
- UKSIF and a member of Business in the Community (a business-led charity focused on promoting responsible business practice).
- The Barclays Bank UK Retirement Fund is a signatory to the UK Stewardship Code.
- Race for Opportunity, an initiative of Business in the Community (Barclays);
- The Employers Network for Equality and Inclusion (Barclays Group);
The Employers' Forum on Disability Members (Barclays plc).
Charitable Giving
In the UK ING Direct (renamed Barclays Direct) employees are involved in raising funds to support the “Supporting the local community” programme’s and have contributed £40,000 since it launched.
In the UK, they currently support three charities in the community’s local to their offices.
“Our employees are committed to raising funds through a range of activities from golf tournaments to quiz nights, marathons to monthly dress down days - to name but a few of the initiatives we've run over the years. Barclays then matches the sum raised through these fundraising activities too - so there's a real incentive to take part.”
“Our people also organise their own fundraisers for charities they feel passionate about – running marathons, doing cycle rides and other sponsored activities.”
ING Direct (renamed Barclays Direct)
- Savings
- Mortgages
ING Direct (renamed Barclays Direct)
Barclays Bank Plc.
Registered Office:
1 Churchill Place,
London
E14 5HP.
