Case study: How Shiga Bank promotes a culture of responsible banking among its employees
Shiga Bank is a regional financial institution in Japan that primarily operates within Shiga Prefecture, with additional branches and business activities in Kyoto, Osaka, Gifu, Aichi, Mie Prefectures, Tokyo, and Hong Kong. The bank offers a range of products and services, focusing on financial intermediation through deposits and loans, serving customers in the region including individuals, small and medium-sized enterprises, and local governments. As of the end of March 2025, the bank’s total individual deposit balance was approximately 5.8 trillion yen, with about 5.2 trillion yen of this amount held in Shiga Prefecture. Its total outstanding loans reached approximately 4.6 trillion yen, of which around 2.6 trillion yen were in Shiga Prefecture. Shiga Bank is a signatory of the Principles for Responsible Banking (PRB) and is, accordingly, promoting a culture of responsible banking among its employees. Tweet This!
This case study is based on the 2025 PRB Reporting and Self-Assessment Template by Shiga Bank 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:
- Principle 5: Governance & Culture
- Principle 4: Stakeholders
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- How Shiga Bank proceeded with stakeholder identification and consultation, and
- How Shiga Bank promotes a culture of responsible banking among its employees
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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.
Shiga Bank’s Management Principles affirm the bank’s commitment to fostering mutual prosperity with regional communities, its employees, and the environment, highlighting the importance of co-creation with all the bank’s stakeholders.
Shiga Bank’s long-term strategy is shaped not only by internal perspectives, but also by insights from various external experts, gathered through stakeholder dialogues.
How does Shiga Bank promote a culture of responsible banking among its employees?
In its 2025 PRB Reporting and Self-Assessment Template Shiga Bank reports that it took the following actions to promote a culture of responsible banking among its employees:
To cultivate a corporate culture of responsibility, Shiga Bank has offered opportunities for employees to learn about sustainability through job rank-based seminars, conducted environmental seminars based on ISO14001 standards, and held semi-annual seminars focused on raising awareness of human rights for all Group employees. Additionally, to promote self-education, Shiga Bank encourages employees to participate in courses on ESG finance and to take relevant examinations.
Shiga Bank has also established the Diversity Promotion Committee, to foster a workplace where diverse opinions are respected and valued and individuals can fully unleash their abilities. Furthermore, Shiga Bank is transforming its performance evaluation system into one that assesses efforts made from a long-term perspective to address social issues within regional communities.
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.
FBRH Principles for Responsible Banking (PRB) Assurance:
First class PRB assurance services: The result of solid, hands-on ESG/ Sustainability experience
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- FBRH is a GRI Certified Training Partner (Global), ISEP Training Centre and a member of CPD.
- FBRH builds trust. Over 200 reviews from top professionals from around the world demonstrate our ability to build strong, trusting business relationships.
- FBRH possesses a unique skill set that combines ESG/sustainability certified training, experience in advisory services and report preparation, and ESG/sustainability report assurance.
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The combination of all the above empowers FBRH to provide first class Principles for Responsible Banking (PRB) assurance services.
References:
This case study is based on published information by Shiga Bank, 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://www.shigagin.com/pdf/ESG_PRB_KPI_Sep2025_en.pdf
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