Find out how KBC contributes to the environment, people and society

We are rising to the challenge and moving towards achieving a more sustainable society

When you have 3.9 million customers in Belgium – and as many as 13 million group-wide – the choices you make have an impact on society. We are fully aware of this and this is why we have developed a strong sustainability approach, which can be easily summarised in the following two actions:

We limit our negative impact with our guiding principles and conscientious choices
We increase our positive impact in areas where we can make a difference

Want to learn more about what we do to mitigate our negative impact and enhance our positive impact? Our sustainability expert Sofie tells you all about it in the following video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Neaw5sRyYGk

What exactly does this mean for the environment, people and society?

How is this commitment embedded in our policy? Are we sufficiently transparent in our reporting in line with the ESG (environmental, social, governmental) pillars?

To find out how we achieved this in Belgium, read our Report to Society.
To find out how we achieved this group-wide, read our Sustainability Report.

A selection of our achievements

In 2015, we committed to the Paris Agreement to help limit global warming to below 2°C (striving for 1.5°C) and in 2019 we signed the United Nations’ Collective Commitment to Climate Action.
We are continually working to reduce our own environmental footprint: we have already cut our direct emissions by 68% since 2015!
In 2022, we set climate objectives for climate-intensive sectors, such as energy, real estate, transport and agriculture.
We invest in sustainable activities including renewable energy and no longer invest in other activities, such as coal and lignite mining or coal- and lignite-fired electricity production.
We help individual customers make their home or business more sustainable, and guide them on their sustainable transition journey by providing them with information and support as a financial partner.

We encourage our customers to make more socially responsible investments. Over the past five years, the amount customers across our entire group invested in responsible investment funds has increased fivefold, to 40.7 billion euros in 2023.
We finance and insure numerous childcare facilities, educational institutions, hospitals and residential care facilities.
We enhance financial literacy among young people by means of our interactive Get-a-Teacher learning programmeand every year we offer some 150 Belgian start-ups a stimulating learning environment free of charge through Startit@KBC.
We pay a great deal of attention to diversity and inclusion and aim to continually improve in these areas. Enhancing gender equality at management level, for example, is one of our focus points.
We are partner to local initiatives and charities such as ‘Kom op tegen Kanker’ and ‘De Warmste Week’, and we also support several small-scale associations.
Together with Cera, we are committed to BRS, an organisation that supports entrepreneurs and farmers in the Global South with microfinancing and microinsurance.

We follow laws and regulations to the letter and strictly adhere to anti-money-laundering and anti-corruption policies.
We enforce a clear code of conduct and promote responsible behaviour among all our employees.
We refrain from doing business with companies from controversial sectors and countries.
We impose sustainability conditions on our suppliers.

We report annually on our group’s sustainability efforts and the challenges involved in our Sustainability Report. We report on KBC Belgium’s progress in our Report to Society.
In 2022, we set climate objectives for the first time. Our 2023 report reflects the progress we have made in realising these objectives.

We have received international recognition

We have received international recognition for our consistent approach to sustainability and transparent reporting, which include being awarded a ‘Leadership A’ rating from CDP (Carbon Disclosure Project) and a ‘negligible ESG risk’ rating from Sustainalytics.

Would you like to know more?

Discover our Report to Society

Discover our Sustainability Report