Austrian Banking Sector Focuses on Sustainability: OeKB > ESG Data Hub Established
In a remarkable step towards promoting sustainability in the financial sector, Oesterreichische Kontrollbank (OeKB) has successfully introduced the OeKB > ESG Data Hub. Around 80% of the domestic banking sector, including well-known institutions such as UniCredit Bank Austria, Raiffeisen-Sektor, Erste Bank, and Sparkassen as well as Oberbank, already use this central online platform.
OeKB Group, with over 500 employees, offers essential services for Austria's export, capital, tourism, energy, and development financing, supporting the economy in a competition-neutral, cross-sectoral, and sustainably responsible manner. / Picture: © © OeKB / Christina Häusler
The OeKB > ESG Data Hub, which was launched in August 2022, aims to establish a uniform standard for the collection of relevant sustainability data (Environmental, Social and Governance, ESG) from companies. With this initiative, OeKB is responding to the growing regulatory requirements in the area of sustainability, which affect both companies and credit institutions.
"The OeKB > ESG Data Hub is a crucial tool in the credit process and offers our corporate customers a significant simplification and reduced effort in credit applications," explains Robert Zadrazil, CEO of UniCredit Bank Austria and President of the Austrian Banking Association.
This initiative comes at a critical time, as new regulatory changes for banks and companies will come into force in 2024. The Green Asset Ratio (GAR) requires large institutions to prove what proportion of their business meets sustainability criteria. At the same time, the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) will be introduced, which will be expanded in stages and will also apply to listed SMEs from 2026.
The OeKB > ESG Data Hub offers companies an efficient and low-threshold solution for collecting and managing their sustainability data. The platform is continuously being developed to meet the ongoing changes in ESG and the underlying regulations. Helmut Bernkopf, CEO of OeKB and initiator of the platform, emphasizes the importance of this development: "With the OeKB > ESG Data Hub, we have achieved our goal of establishing an Austrian standard and are thus taking on a pioneering role within the EU."
The establishment of the OeKB > ESG Data Hub is a significant step towards a more sustainable and transparent financial world and strengthens Austria's position in global competition.
Further information on the OeKB > ESG Data Hub can be found at www.oekb-esgdatahub.com