BNP Paribas top European bank in Vigeo Eiris ratings for 2017

BNP Paribas has improved its overall performance in this year’s ratings, achieving especially good scores on criteria including Human Rights, Human Resources Management and Corporate Governance, which all gained 3 points versus the ratings compiled in 2015.

The Group maintains a listing in all EURONEXT/Vigeo Eiris indices:

Vigeo Eiris and BNP Paribas

Created through a merger of two leading European agencies that specialised in rating companies and organisations on their environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance, Vigeo Eiris is a world-reputed extra-financial analysis agency.

BNP Paribas has been taking part in the Vigeo Eiris (formerly Vigeo) ratings process since 2003. The Bank is required to fill out a questionnaire detailing its business and its corporate ESG policies. The questionnaire comprises six sections covering the six major domains which Vigeo Eiris sees as having major extra-financial impacts on a bank such as BNP Paribas, namely: Environment, Human Resources, Human Rights, Community Involvement, Business Behaviour and Corporate Governance.

The BNP Paribas Group’s Morocco subsidiary BMCI also responds to the Vigeo Eiris questionnaire in accordance with its scope and businesses. In 2016, BMCI’s laudable performance secured the bank a listing in the EURONEXT-Vigeo Eiris Ranking Emerging 70 index.

“We’re very proud to have taken first place among European banks in these very demanding Vigeo Eiris ratings. The continuous improvement shown by BNP Paribas since we began to take part in this ratings process back in 2003 bears witness to the efforts the Bank has made to help finance sustainable economic development and have a positive impact on its stakeholders and on society as a whole,” declared Laurence Pessez, BNP Paribas Group Head of Corporate Social Responsibility.

Extra-financial ratings

‘Extra-financial’ analysis consists of assessing companies, sovereign states and other kinds of issuers of financial securities on their environmental, social and governance (ESG) policies. Based on this analysis, the agency then draws up a rating that enables a comparison to be made between different issuers –  whether or not they are listed companies – on their ESG practices.

This type of rating is based on ‘declarative’ information rather than mandatory disclosure, and the rating agency is not remunerated by the company itself. Extra-financial ratings agencies are paid by investors looking to orient their investments to ‘sustainability’ or long-term considerations.

The latest BNP Paribas scores