Case study: How ALEXBANK promotes a culture of responsible banking among its employees

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.

ALEXBANK places great emphasis on engaging stakeholders in responsible banking, understanding their essential contribution to its sustainability efforts. The bank’s stakeholders include its Employees, Senior Management, Customers, Suppliers and Business Partners, Communities and NGOs, Governments and Regulators, and Shareholders.

ALEXBANK prioritizes key material topics across its stakeholders. For employees, the bank focuses on retention, diversity & inclusion, health & safety, data security, and integrity. Senior management emphasizes governance, ESG risk management, and integrity. For customers, ALEXBANK’s key topics include responsible lending, green finance, sustainable agribusiness, financial inclusion, data protection, and customer experience. Suppliers and business partners are engaged on integrity, responsible lending, green finance, ESG risk management, and digital accessibility, while Communities and NGOs are key to responsible lending, green finance, sustainable agribusiness, financial inclusion, and community empowerment. For governments and regulators, ALEXBANK focuses on responsible lending, green finance, environmental stewardship, governance, and data security. For shareholders, good governance and ESG risk management are key.

Partnerships for Impact

• ALEXBANK collaborates with the European Investment Bank (EIB) through various initiatives aimed at promoting sustainable development in Egypt. Under the Green Economy Financing Facility (GEFF), ALEXBANK and the EIB committed a total of $15 million to finance renewable energy adoption and energy efficiency projects in Egypt’s industrial, commercial, and agricultural sectors.
• In addition to this, in October 2024, ALEXBANK and the EIB issued a second disbursement of USD 7.5 million for sustainable energy solutions. This collaboration, supported by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the European Union, seeks to improve energy efficiency and renewable energy adoption in privately owned commercial buildings across Egypt. Eligible businesses will receive financial incentives of up to 2% of the facility’s aggregate amount, with sub-borrowers benefiting from incentives ranging from 10% to 15%.
• ALEXBANK has partnered with Life Vision to improve the livelihoods of 400 female farmers in Upper Egypt. The project sets up Farmer Field Schools & Farm Business Schools, providing 36 training sessions over 10 months on advanced farming and irrigation practices. The training curriculum strengthens smallholders’ farmer’s capacity and productivity. In addition, participants received 5 financial literacy sessions as part of the Central Bank of Egypt’s financial inclusion initiatives.
• 36 sessions
• Total project amount: 1200000
• Direct Beneficiaries: 1161 farmers aged 36-45
• ALEXBANK, in collaboration with WFP and CBE, launched the project “Innovative Financing by the Banking Sector to transform smallholder farmers in Upper Egypt.” The project started in July 2023 in upper Egypt, specifically in Hayah Kareema villages, focusing on financing interventions to increase productivity. By December 2025, activities were implemented in 2 villages in AlMinya Governorate to improve water use efficiency and create sustainable livelihoods.
• Total Project amount: 3000000
• Total Direct Beneficiaries: 6054
• Through a partnership with GIZ Egypt, ALEXBANK seeks to promote financial inclusion in rural Egypt. This collaboration focuses on farmers in the Beni Suef and Minya governorates, providing access to ALEXBANK’s financial services and financial literacy programs. By the end of 2024, 8 financial literacy sessions were conducted as part of the Central Bank of Egypt’s financial inclusion (FI) activation. This program is intended to equip farmers with the necessary knowledge to make informed financial decisions, helping them maximize their income.
• ALEXBANK remains committed to empowering rural women entrepreneurs in agribusiness by collaborating with the Alinea International under the Opportunities for Women in Agribusiness project (OWAP). In 2023, ALEXBANK supported 50 women-led environmentally sustainable startups in the Beni Suef and Minya governorates. These women were provided with essential resources such as financial education and diverse funding sources. In a final competition held in October 2024 virtually, 10 women entrepreneurs were awarded 10k each to help expand their businesses.
• Total project amount: 100,000
• 10 awarded female-led startups
• Direct Beneficiaries: 270 (190 female & 80 male)
• In October 2024, ALEXBANK, as part of the Intesa Sanpaolo Group, signed a five-year MoU with Cassa Depositi e Prestiti S.p.A. (CDP), Italy’s National Promotion Institution. The agreement is intended to improve access to microcredit and expertise for Egyptian agricultural SMEs, promoting sustainable development in Egypt’s agribusiness sector.

How does ALEXBANK promote a culture of responsible banking among its employees?

In its 2024 PRB Reporting and Self-Assessment Template ALEXBANK reports that it took the following actions to promote a culture of responsible banking among its employees:

ALEXBANK is improving staff expertise in ESG through training and capacity-building initiatives. It advances financial inclusion by increasing access to digital products and services for underserved communities. Additionally, ALEXBANK supports Retail, Corporate, and SME clients in their ESG transition by offering customized sustainable finance solutions.

ALEXBANK encourages financing initiatives focused on environmental sustainability and has established internal policies to oversee ESG-related portfolio risks. The bank is dedicated to sustainable operations by practicing responsible resource management and green procurement. Additionally, the Environmental and Social Risk Management System will be enhanced to strengthen risk governance, and sustainability reporting will be implemented to monitor progress and accomplishments.

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

• • • 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.

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 ALEXBANK, 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.alexbank.com/en/retail/our-group/sustainability/publications.html

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