Sustainability benchmarking of European banks and financial service organizations

A benchmark study of European banks and financial service organizations is presented, inquiring into the extent to which they have integrated sustainability into their policies, strategies, products, services and processes. Using a multi-level analysis – beginning with a screening of 127 organizations and finishing with in-depth interviews of eight of them, approaches to integrating sustainability were analysed. Furthermore, five models for successful integration of sustainability into the banking business were found: event related integration of sustainability, sustainability as a new banking strategy, sustainability as a value driver, sustainability as a public mission and sustainability as a requirement of clients.