Case study: How Aktia 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.

Co-operation with various stakeholder groups helps Aktia assess and respond to the expectations placed upon it. Key stakeholders include customers, employees, shareholders, and financiers, as well as social operators such as authorities, partners, NGOs, and the media. Aktia maintains ongoing, open dialogue across multiple channels with its stakeholders to enhance its operations. Its open and transparent collaboration tools include the company’s website, social media platforms, stock exchange and press releases, customer newsletters, and regular communication with selected stakeholder groups. Aktia engages with stakeholders through seminars, webinars, local events, trade fairs, and participation in projects. The company also participates in industry forums to discuss trends, challenges, and opportunities, while monitoring and assessing public debates related to its industry. Open and transparent cooperation with authorities, partners, and the media at both national and local levels is a priority for Aktia. Additionally, Aktia aims to be an active social participant at the local level by collaborating with schools and universities—offering scholarships, participating in school events, and supporting students with their thesis work. The company also maintains close ties with regional Aktia foundations, which fund various local community activities, partly supported by dividends received from Aktia’s ownership.

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

In its 2024 PRB Progress Statement Aktia reports that it took the following actions to promote a culture of responsible banking among its employees:

To support and guide operational management and employees, Aktia has compiled its key rules and ethical principles into the Aktia Code of Conduct, which must be observed when performing their duties. The Aktia Group’s Code of Conduct addresses topics such as the role of management and employees as Aktia’s representatives, handling personal and family matters related to Aktia, anti-corruption measures, secondary occupations and positions of trust, as well as safeguarding Aktia’s business secrets. It also includes regulations on insider trading, prevention of money laundering and terrorism financing, and compliance with financial sanctions. Since customer relations are central to Aktia’s operations, the Code of Conduct also contains essential rules regarding confidentiality and the handling of customer complaints.

All employees and management are required to undergo training on Aktia’s Code of Conduct annually, which is conducted via the internal digital training platform. Depending on their responsibilities, employees may also be required to complete additional internal training modules on the same platform.

The Aktia Way studies, which are mandatory for all employees and completed through an online learning environment, serve as the foundation for ensuring and developing competence. These studies are based on the principles outlined in Aktia’s Code of Conduct, with the goal of ensuring that employees understand how to act in accordance with its guidelines.

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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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 Aktia, 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.aktia.com/sites/aktia-corp/files/sustainability/economic-responsibility/Aktia Bank Plc_PRB_Progress_Statement_2024.pdf

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