Consulting services on ESG integration for large banks and commercial real estate finance providers

Despite the Covid-19 pandemic, pressure from EU Sustainable Finance regulation has intensified. The urgently needed adjustments affect the entire business and operating model, including the establishment and expansion of a comprehensive ESG data warehouse, which is based on industry-specific ESG standards for ESG integration into various risk models. This requires large banks and commercial real estate finance providers to invest a lot of time and money. zeb supports you in your ESG integration in a profit-oriented manner at all times by providing the following consulting services:

ESG integration in situation analysis, target system and bank strategies

• Situation analysis of the political, economic and financial environment as well as key challenges for ESG

• ESG integration into the bank’s target system (vision, corporate mission, strategic bank targets, target weightings)

• ESG orientation of bank strategies (active/passive basic strategies, strategic policy and business area planning)

• Materiality analysis: focus on the most important non-financial performance indicators in the bank’s core business

• “ESG and climate protection transition as an opportunity”; profit-oriented use of the large, light green zone between positive criteria (such as taxonomy) and negative criteria such as exclusion of fossil energies)

Contact: Dr. Axel Hesse, Senior Manager

ESG risk management & regulation

• Ensuring compliance with ESG requirements of ECB, EBA, CRD V, CRR II, Taxonomy Regulation, Disclosure Regulation (SFDR), NFRD/CSR-RUG/non-financial statement

• Integration of the ESG strategy into the risk strategy, the risk appetite framework and the risk inventory

• Further development of credit risk management by taking ESG criteria into account in the lending process, in loan portfolio management and in the outplacement of risks

• Further development of risk methods:

1. Development of ESG scoring of counterparties, projects and assets taking into account existing KPI standards

2. Definition of ESG portfolio KPIs and simulation of the impact of climate risks on the loan book

• Creation of an in-house risk database for the further development, parameterization and validation of risk models

Contact: Dr. Jens Kuttig, Senior Partner

ESG-reporting

• Focusing of external sustainability/CSR reporting

• Materiality analysis for external ESG reporting in accordance with CRR II, CRD V, EBA, ECB, NFRD/CSR-RUG/non-financial statement, Disclosure Regulation (SFDR), Taxonomy Regulation, RTS

• Achieving consistent and focused overall ESG reporting

• Communication strategy for key target groups such as institutional investors, financial and ESG analysts

• zeb.Regulatory Hub: provides you with an up-to-date overview of the constantly growing ESG regulatory environment

• Support on reporting and regulatory ESG disclosure (impact on minimum capital requirements and risk reporting)

• Support for policymakers and associations in ESG policy field planning and co-development of ESG reporting standards

Contact: Jacob Kleinow, Manager; Dr. Axel Hesse, Senior Manager

Business impact on commercial real estate

• Tapping new business potentials by financing CO2 reduction measures

• ESG-compliant improvement of the valuation processes for commercial real estate

• Integration of ESG compliance in credit pricing

• Advice on the issuance, structuring and marketing of green CRE covered bonds and sustainability-linked CRE covered bonds

Contact: Dr. Jens Kuttig, Senior Partner

Business impact on corporate banking, treasury and markets

• Use of ESG funding to make the loan book profitable (e.g. in partnership with development banks and/or government grant programs)

• Advisory approach to corporate banking, e.g.: What do companies need to do to be EU taxonomy-compliant or to receive climate protection transition funding?

• Advice on the targeted identification of companies eligible for greater use of ESG funding

• Analysis of ESG performance indicators: definition, measurement and reconciliation with existing ESG data in public company databases

• Advice on launching green bonds, social bonds, sustainability-linked bonds as funding for commercial banks, if required in cooperation with investment banks

Contact: Dr. Dirk Holländer , Senior Partner; Kai Stefani, Partner

Business impact on retail banking

• Creation of unique selling propositions (USPs) in ESG-oriented competition

• Generation of income and profits through ESG integration in private and corporate customer products (retail/wholesale)

• Boosting product attractiveness and valuation

Contact: Dr.Dirk Holländer, Senior Partner; Ulrich Hoyer, Senior Partner

ESG research services

Scientific, pragmatic and decision-oriented concept development, design and implementation of advanced training courses in the field of sustainable finance:

• in cooperation with leading banking academies, banking associations and scientific institutions

• zeb sustainable finance seminars

European Banking Study 2020

• Climate protection – the great game changer

• Policy agenda – ambition and instruments

• Banking agenda – more than greenwashing

• Click here to request the study free of charge

BankingHub – the portal for banking news – is increasingly putting ESG topics center stage, e.g.:

• European Asset Management Studie 2020: “ESG is becoming the new standard and growth driver for net new money, but asset managers are not yet achieving the targets they have set for themselves in terms of a holistic ESG orientation.”

• ESG investing: the rise of a new standard – Current ESG trends and future challenges for financial institutions

Contact: Prof. Dr. Joachim Paul Hasebrook, Academic Director of the zeb Business School;
Prof. Dr. Michael Lister, Head of zeb.campus; Gerd Stickling, Partner; Dr. Ekkehard Bauer, Senior Manager