Case study: How the Development and Investment Bank of Turkey works with its clients and customers to encourage sustainable practices
Centred on financing sustainable development in alignment with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and Turkey’s 2053 net-zero emission ambitions, the Development and Investment Bank of Turkey offers extensive support to investors through its robust resource base, skilled personnel, and innovative products and services. The bank provides loans, capita support, and partnership and advisory services to companies that contribute to the growth of the national economy. The Development and Investment Bank of Turkey is a signatory of the PRB and is, accordingly, working with its clients and customers to encourage sustainable practices and enable sustainable economic activities. Tweet This!
This case study is based on the 2023 Integrated Report by the Development and Investment Bank of Turkey prepared in relation to its implementation of the PRB, that can be found at this link. Through all case studies we aim to demonstrate what ESG/ sustainability reporting done responsibly means. Essentially, it means: a) identifying a company’s most important impacts on the environment, economy and society, and b) measuring, managing and changing.
Which Principles for Responsible Banking have been addressed?
The Principles for Responsible Banking addressed in this case are:
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- Principle 3: Clients and Customers
- Principle 4: Stakeholders
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- How the Development and Investment Bank of Turkey proceeded with stakeholder identification and consultation, and
- How the Development and Investment Bank of Turkey worked with its clients and customers to encourage sustainable practices and enable sustainable economic activities
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Stakeholder identification and consultation
Please describe which stakeholders (or groups/ types of stakeholders) you have identified, consulted, engaged, collaborated or partnered with for the purpose of implementing the Principles and improving your bank’s impacts. This should include a high-level overview of how your bank has identified relevant stakeholders, what issues were addressed/results achieved and how they fed into the action planning process.
The Development and Investment Bank of Turkey operates with a cohesive approach within the framework of its sustainability strategy. In line with this strategy, the bank places great importance on gathering stakeholder perspectives regarding material issues.
The Development and Investment Bank of Turkey maintains regular communication with its stakeholders, focusing on their key concerns and actively listening to their views on business practices. Simultaneously, it seeks to understand stakeholder expectations, creates value by considering these expectations, and continually enhances its activities and practices to meet them.
Stakeholder groups include employees, international financial institutions, investors, customers, public agencies, non-governmental organizations, suppliers, and auditors. As each group has different expectations, the channels and methods of communication vary accordingly.
How did the Development and Investment Bank of Turkey work with its clients and customers to encourage sustainable practices and enable sustainable economic activities?
In its 2023 Integrated Report the Development and Investment Bank of Turkey reports that it works with its clients and customers to encourage sustainable practices and enable sustainable economic activities as follows:
The Development and Investment Bank of Turkey prioritizes “Role in Supporting Sustainable Development” as a key strategic focus. In 2020, the bank published its “Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation Policy,” aiming to play a facilitative and transformative role in addressing climate change, transitioning to a net-zero economy, and enhancing energy efficiency through extensive impact investing, while managing its direct environmental impacts. Within this framework, the Development and Investment Bank of Turkey has identified increasing Türkiye’s clean energy potential and mobilizing resources for renewable energy projects as strategic priorities.
The bank promotes environmentally sustainable growth by supporting investments in renewable energy and projects that improve energy and resource efficiency. It aims to integrate domestic energy sources into the economy through initiatives in hydroelectric, solar, wind, biomass, and geothermal power, while also addressing the financing needs of investors in these sectors.
Additionally, the Development and Investment Bank of Turkey collaborates with international financial institutions to finance energy and resource efficiency projects. In the private sector, it offers merger and acquisition advisory services to companies operating in energy, chemicals, automotive, packaging, retail, and technology sectors.
Over the past 19 years, the bank has made significant contributions to Türkiye’s economy, providing USD 5.7 billion in financing from international sources across sectors such as industry, renewable energy, energy and resource efficiency, circular economy, education, health, wholesale banking, urban infrastructure, and tourism.
In 2024, the bank’s sustainability-focused loan portfolio accounted for 79% of the total portfolio, which increased to 93% by the end of 2023, reflecting its strong commitment to sustainable investments. In 2023, the bank contributed to 15 out of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), providing USD 2.6 billion in loans aligned with SDGs. It also financed 6% of Türkiye’s renewable energy projects and supported the reduction of 4.6 million metric tons of CO₂ emissions.
The Development and Investment Bank of Turkey has taken a leadership role in this transition by expanding its green finance portfolio and embedding sustainability principles into its operations, guided by global and sectoral developments. As a pioneer in supporting Türkiye’s vision of reaching net-zero emissions by 2053, the bank is implementing various strategic financing initiatives toward this goal and is committed to achieving net-zero emissions by 2050. Currently, 83% of its portfolio consists of investment loans, 7% operational loans, and 10% APEX loans, with 58% dedicated to renewable energy and energy efficiency projects.
UN Principles for Responsible Banking: Accelerating a positive global transition for people and the planet
With over 300 signatory banks representing almost half of the global banking industry, the Principles for Responsible Banking are the world’s foremost sustainable banking framework. Through these Principles, the banking community takes action to align core strategies, decision-making, lending and investment with the UN Sustainable Development Goals and international agreements such as the Paris Climate Agreement.
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References:
This case study is based on published information by the Development and Investment Bank of Turkey, located at the link below. For the sake of readability, we did not use brackets or ellipses. However, we made sure that the extra or missing words did not change the report’s meaning. If you would like to quote these written sources from the original please revert to the following link:
https://kalkinma.com.tr/assets/uploads/pdf/en/Integrated Report 2023.pdf
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