ABN AMRO moves ahead on biodiversity with action plan

According to research conducted by ABN AMRO and the Impact Institute, Dutch production and consumption together cause nearly EUR 40 billion worth of damage to biodiversity. That’s why understanding and reducing this impact are crucial. ABN AMRO aims to be a driver in this process.

Health and the economy

“In recent years, public debate has focused primarily on climate change. But now, the loss of biodiversity is crashing over us like a tidal wave,” says Christa Beaufort, Global Manager Sustainability at ABN AMRO. “It’s a top-level crisis that’s negatively impacting on our economy and our health, as well as accelerating the climate crisis.”

“The irony is that our efforts to reverse climate change are also having a detrimental effect on biodiversity, the very source of all life. Examples include the impact of offshore wind turbines on certain types of seabird. Or the environmental cost of mining the raw materials needed to make the energy transition. We have to start approaching the challenge of sustainability more as an interconnected whole.”

Impact on biodiversity

ABN AMRO is taking its responsibility seriously to slow the loss of biodiversity. As a first step, the bank is incorporating biodiversity into its risk management and assessment of business clients. It also recently started to publish annual data on its own portfolio’s impact on biodiversity. These data show that, through its clients, the bank has a significant impact on biodiversity.

This is why the bank has chosen two sectors to focus on to slow the loss of biodiversity: the built environment, and agriculture and food. It’s an obvious choice, since over 30 percent of the damage caused by the bank to biodiversity can be attributed to the agriculture and food sector. Likewise, many of the loans ABN AMRO grants are linked with the built environment.

No finger-pointing

“What we don’t want to do is point fingers,” says Fred Bos, Head of Commercial Clients. “We want to start a conversation with these companies, asking questions like: where are you now and how do you plan to improve? They can also use our expertise to identify risks of biodiversity loss and benefit from our support in making plans for improvement. At the same time, we shouldn’t underestimate what these businesses are already doing of their own accord: more and more construction companies are already tuned in to nature-inclusive construction. And actors in the food sector are taking steps towards plant-based proteins and less waste. Companies know there’s plenty of work to do.”

Businesses can opt for loans with special conditions attached. Making the transition takes time and money. That’s why ABN AMRO offers agricultural entrepreneurs the opportunity to defer their loan repayments for three to five years. This break is intended to give them the breathing space they need to switch to an organic or regenerative model. Players in some sectors are also eligible for an interest rate reduction if they meet specific sustainability targets.

Christa says it makes sense for ABN AMRO to take responsibility in this process: “If we want a healthy future for our society, our clients, our economy and ourselves as a bank, we have to commit and take action. If we ignore the threats to biodiversity, we’ll end up with a barren planet. And that’s obviously in no one’s interest.”

Towards better data

Biodiversity is currently too complex for rapid, large-scale and measurable results at the client level. Christa says the continued limited availability of specific, comparable data is “a major challenge”: “How do you quantify a particular business’ impact? And how much positive impact will specific plans generate? It’s not easy. In the coming years, we will be working on more granular data to help our clients make the transition more effectively.”

The outcomes of ABN AMRO’s stakeholder dialogues were recently used to develop an action plan for the future modelled on the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. Fred says, “Basically, this means our society must halt the loss of biodiversity before 2030 and then begin to restore it. We’re currently defining exactly what that means for the bank.”

Work to be done

All this goes beyond helping clients make the transition. There’s also work to be done when it comes to the bank’s own footprint. For instance, the redevelopment of the new offices at Foppingadreef in Amsterdam overseen by an ecologist has been planned in accordance with nature-inclusive construction principles. Even the food has been considered: the bank’s catering service is now 75 percent plant-based.

Fred sums up, “We haven’t got all the answers yet. But that’s no reason to sit back and do nothing. ‘Banking for better, for generations to come’ always starts today. We have to take action and hold ourselves accountable through all the reporting we do on our own impact. That’s what we’re committed to pursuing. And based on current insights and data, we look forward to increasing awareness and engagement in high-impact sectors. That’s our first win.”