Climate Change Data

Environmental Metrics

ESG Focus Areas

• Educational Dimension
• Human and Social Dimension
• Environmental Dimension

Environmental Achievements

• Participation in RobecoSAM's corporate sustainability assessment and inclusion in the MILA Pacific Alliance Dow Jones Sustainability Index.
• Disclosure of environmental impacts through the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP).
• Commitment to the Green Protocol in Colombia.

Social Achievements

• Corporación Microcrédito Aval disbursed $57,000 million through 44,300 microloans, impacting 22,000 low-income families.
• 99% employee participation in the “Avancemos Juntos” training program with over 1400 training hours.
• Educational assistance provided to some employees for university or postgraduate studies.
• Banco de Bogotá trained 19,148 individuals in financial education.
• Banco Popular's “Aprendamos más” initiative had 91,346 user visits to financial education content.
• Banco AV Villas' Basic Curriculum trained 37,500 children in 28 cities.
• Corficolombiana's programs benefited 8,527 people, including children and teachers.
• Occupational safety and health management system covered 92% of employees.
• 100% employee coverage of activities such as entertainment evenings and Olympics.

Governance Achievements

• Not disclosed

Climate Goals & Targets

Environmental Challenges

• Not disclosed

Mitigation Strategies

• Not disclosed

Supply Chain Management

Supplier Audits: Not disclosed

Responsible Procurement

• Not disclosed

Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities

Physical Risks

• Not disclosed

Transition Risks

• Not disclosed

Opportunities

• Not disclosed

Reporting Standards

Frameworks Used: Null

Certifications: Null

Third-party Assurance: Not disclosed

UN Sustainable Development Goals

• Not disclosed

Not disclosed

Sustainable Products & Innovation

• Not disclosed

Awards & Recognition

• Not disclosed

Environmental Metrics

ESG Focus Areas

• Corporate governance, risks and ethics
• Financial performance
• Corporate efficiency
• Human resources
• Environment and communities

Environmental Achievements

• Calculation of 100% of the carbon footprint in offices, administrative headquarters and executive management.
• Planting of 9,800 trees in 2019, 1,800 of which were planted by the bank's employees through environmental volunteering.
• Reduction of energy consumption by 29% in 16 branches of Banco de Occidente.
• Operation of two branches with solar panels (Yopal and El Edén shopping center in Bogotá) in Banco de Occidente.
• Capture of 321,236 tons of CO2 by rubber forest between 2015 and 2019.
• Sale of 321,236 Certified Emissions Reductions, equivalent to 336,641 tons of CO2 captured.

Social Achievements

• Disbursement of more than 2,762 microcredits for around COP 17,006 million in 761 municipalities (Banco de Bogotá).
• Increase in the number of customers enrolled by 2%, through the implementation and development of methods of analysis and product approval, focused on knowledge of agricultural activities (Banco de Bogotá).
• Launch of a new mobile office (van) to complement the “A Journey for the Progress of the Country” Road to Financial Inclusion strategy, reaching 19 municipalities located in six departments of the country: Tolima, Huila, Cauca, Nariño, Caldas and Risaralda (Banco de Bogotá).
• Organization of six talks on financial education for retirees with the participation of 1,240 senior citizens (Banco Popular).
• Inclusion into the banking system of 25,449 customers, achieving 450,177 retirees at the close of December 2019 (Banco Popular).
• Strengthening of 14,400 companies in 2019 (BAC).
• Support of 325 female entrepreneurs (BAC).

Governance Achievements

• Approval of the “Policy for the Identification, Communication, Management and Control of Conflicts of Interest in the Aval Financial Conglomerate” by the Board of Directors.
• Approval of the “Corporate Information Security Policy” by the Board of Directors.
• Update and disclosure of the ABAC Corporate Policy.
• Analysis of all reports received through the Aval Ethics Hotline.

Climate Goals & Targets

Environmental Challenges

• Pricing competition in the banking industry.
• Increased unemployment rate in Colombia.
• Slowdown in the global economy.
• Social and political tension in Nicaragua.

Mitigation Strategies

• Better portfolio quality, resulting in a lower cost of risk.
• Digitalization efforts and cost enhancement strategy.
• Leveraging strong financial results in terms of balance sheet.
• Implementation of the Environmental and Social Risk Management System (ESRMS).

Supply Chain Management

Responsible Procurement

• Establishing corporate procurement policies.
• Identifying and applying best practices.
• Defining and standardizing systems for efficiency.

Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities

Reporting Standards

Frameworks Used: GRI Standards: Core option

Sustainable Products & Innovation

• Occiauto Planeta Azul hybrid and electric vehicle loan (Banco de Occidente)
• Bikehouse credit card (Banco AV Villas)
• dale! digital platform

Awards & Recognition

• Great Place to Work (Banco de Occidente)
• IR Recognition (Colombian Securities Exchange)

Environmental Metrics

ESG Focus Areas

• Environmental
• Social
• Governance

Environmental Achievements

• Banco de Bogotá achieved carbon neutrality and joined the Net Zero Banking Alliance.
• Significant reduction in carbon footprint in Grupo Aval Holding (56% from 2019).
• Tree planting initiatives across various subsidiaries (e.g., Banco Popular planted 3,316 trees).

Social Achievements

• Launched dale!, a digital wallet promoting financial inclusion, with close to one million clients.
• Dispersed subsidies through dale! and Banco de Occidente, reaching over 239,000 people.
• Financial education programs benefiting hundreds of thousands of people across various subsidiaries.
• Banco de Bogotá's “Finanzas Contigo” program benefited 356,079 people.
• Banco Popular's SME Strengthening Program benefited over 200 SMEs.

Governance Achievements

• Improved Corporate Governance indicators from 73% to 87% in 2022.
• Implemented a Risk Committee of the Board of Directors.
• Strengthened anti-corruption and compliance programs.

Climate Goals & Targets

Environmental Challenges

• High inflation and interest rate increases impacting profitability.
• Economic slowdown affecting portfolio growth.
• Devaluation of the Colombian peso increasing risk exposure.
• Climate change risks affecting investments and credit allocation.
• Cybersecurity threats to IT infrastructure.

Mitigation Strategies

• Capital and liquidity optimization strategies.
• Expense optimization initiatives.
• Strict risk management and price calculation mechanisms.
• Development of a methodology for analyzing physical climate risks in the portfolio (Banco de Bogotá).
• Strengthened cybersecurity measures and incident response capabilities.

Supply Chain Management

Supplier Audits: Not disclosed

Responsible Procurement

• ESG criteria in 41% of Porvenir's purchases.
• Corficolombiana's Sustainable Award recognizing sustainable suppliers.

Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities

Physical Risks

• Torrential floods, landslides, cyclones, floods, heat waves
• Changes in precipitation patterns, extreme climate variability, increase in average temperature, rise in sea levels

Transition Risks

• Regulatory changes, market shifts

Opportunities

• Development of energy-efficient products and services
• Sustainable financing opportunities

Reporting Standards

Frameworks Used: GRI

Certifications: LEED Healthcare Gold (CTIC), Carbon Neutral (Banco de Bogotá), Friendly Biz (Grupo Aval)

Third-party Assurance: Not disclosed

UN Sustainable Development Goals

• Goal 1
• Goal 4
• Goal 5
• Goal 8
• Goal 9
• Goal 12
• Goal 13
• Goal 16

Initiatives contributing to poverty reduction, quality education, gender equality, decent work, industry innovation, responsible consumption, climate action, and peace and justice.

Sustainable Products & Innovation

• Sustainable Builder credit
• Financing of electric and hybrid vehicles
• Green bonds

Awards & Recognition

• Best Bank in Colombia (Euromoney, Global Finance)
• Market Leader in Inclusion and Diversity (Euromoney)
• Best Financial Innovation Lab (Global Finance)
• Best Bank in Digital Lending and Best Experience Design (Global Finance)
• S&P Global Sustainability Yearbook
• Dow Jones Sustainability Index
• Friendly Biz Recertification
• Pride of Colombia Award (Luis Carlos Sarmiento Angulo)

Environmental Metrics

ESG Focus Areas

• Climate change management and mitigation
• Human talent
• Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
• Financial inclusion and education
• Reputation & corporate marketing
• Ethics, corporate governance, compliance, and internal control
• ESG risk management
• Sustainable finance
• Security, information privacy and data protection

Environmental Achievements

• Banco de Bogotá became the first Carbon Neutral (Net Zero) bank in Colombia.
• Corficolombiana achieved Carbon Neutral certification.
• Surtigas inaugurated the largest solar farm in Colombia (700 KWh/year).

Social Achievements

• Banco de Occidente recognized as “Best Place to Work in Colombia”.
• Grupo Aval, Aval Banks, Corficolombiana, Porvenir and dale! received Friendly Biz Certification.
• Mission La Guajira project launched to address basic needs in La Guajira.

Governance Achievements

• Improved compliance with information requirements from 78.8% to 83.1%.
• Implementation of environmental and social risk management systems (SARAS) initiated in three banks.
• Adherence to the United Nations Sustainable Finance Program (UNEP FI).

Climate Goals & Targets

Environmental Challenges

• Challenging economic environment with weak economy, high inflation, and tight monetary policy leading to interest margin compression and increased cost of risk.
• Supply chain disruptions.
• Credit deterioration cycle in the consumer loan market.
• High funding costs due to Basel III regulation implementation.

Mitigation Strategies

• Capital and liquidity strengthening and optimization strategies.
• Expense optimization initiatives.
• Focus on commercial activity effectiveness.
• Stricter loan origination policies.
• Strategies to contain costs without stifling commercial apparatus.
• Methods of generating income.

Supply Chain Management

Responsible Procurement

• Environmental factors included in tenders for environmentally friendly goods.

Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities

Physical Risks

• El Niño phenomenon

Transition Risks

• Regulatory changes, market shifts

Reporting Standards

Frameworks Used: GRI Standards, SASB (Commercial Banking and Asset Management and Custody Activities industries)

Third-party Assurance: KPMG S.A.S. (KPMG Colombia)

UN Sustainable Development Goals

• 9 SDGs in 2023

The report mentions contributions to 9 of the 17 UN SDGs, but doesn't specify which ones.

Awards & Recognition

• LinkedIn's Top Companies in Colombia
• Great Place To Work
• Best Financial Innovation Lab 2023 (Banco de Bogotá)
• Best Bank in Colombia 2023 (Banco de Bogotá)
• Best Bank in Digital Consumer Lending and Best Mobile Banking Application in Latin America (Banco de Bogotá)
• Market Leader in Digital Solutions and in Diversity and Inclusion (Banco de Bogotá)
• Members of the DJSI SP Global Sustainability Yearbook (Banco de Bogotá)
• Best place to work in Colombia (Banco de Occidente)
• Great Place to Work and Icontec certification (Banco de Occidente)
• One of the ten companies in Colombia that is in the DJSI (Banco de Occidente)
• Banking as a Service (BaaS) provider and Excellence in Digital Transformation of the Year 2023 (dale!)