In collaboration with BDO, Eika Gruppen has developed and implemented industry-specific ESG modules as part of the assessment criteria in the credit process for the corporate market. ESG stands for Environmental, Social, and Governance, which in Norwegian corresponds to environmental factors, social factors, and corporate governance.
BDO can identify and analyse relevant ESG factors in your company.
– Sustainability risk manifests differently across industries. At the same time, it can have a direct impact on a customer’s credit risk, making it crucial for banks to understand this connection. The industry-specific ESG modules have therefore been developed to identify and assess sustainability-related risk across the corporate market portfolio. This provides us with a more holistic and improved understanding of the customer’s overall risk," says Joachim Vorkinn, Credit Business Developer at Eika Gruppen.
The banking sector plays a key role.
Eika is an alliance consisting of more than 40 independent local banks. The banking sector plays a key role in the transition to a sustainable economy and is therefore one of the industries facing the highest expectations and demands. Eika aims to be a driving force for sustainable development for both customers and local communities.
– We chose BDO because of their strong industry experience and expertise in sustainability. The collaboration has worked exceptionally well, and we would like to commend them for a clear, effective, and professional process. This has also been the feedback from the banks within the alliance that participated in the project," says Vorkinn.
A Rewarding Collaboration
Throughout the process, BDO has provided support with project execution, the development of assessment criteria, and training of advisors.
– As one of the largest players in the financial sector, with significant influence and member banks that are strongly rooted in their local communities, it has been highly rewarding to collaborate with Eika. We have involved professionals, both industry specialists from the member banks and resources from the Eika Group. Eika is at the forefront of sustainability and possesses solid expertise in the field, says Tobias Torheim, Project Manager and Manager at BDO Consulting.
– The integration of ESG into the credit process is becoming increasingly important for our banking clients. We observe that many banks see the need to develop or update their assessment criteria, and that advisers require more training in the area of sustainability. This is driven, among other things, by expectations from customers, investors and other stakeholders, in addition to stricter regulatory requirements and expectations from the Financial Supervisory Authority of Norway and European supervisory authorities (EBA). That is why it is particularly exciting to collaborate with such a committed player as Eika, says Kristine Øvrebø, Industry Leader for Banking and Finance at BDO.
