Case study: How Şekerbank identifies and works on strategic business opportunities to increase positive and reduce negative impacts

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.

Şekerbank re-evaluates its list of material issues annually in collaboration with both internal and external stakeholders, considering evolving standards and international developments in sustainability. As a dynamic process, the materiality analysis benefits from the insights of various stakeholders, regulations, standards, corporate strategies, and key global developments. In identifying its material topics, Şekerbank takes into account best practices, the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) Financial Services – Commercial Banking sector material topics, the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), and IFRS S1 (General Requirements for Disclosure of Sustainability-Related Financial Information) issued by the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB), which is part of the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) organization. In 2024, Şekerbank re-examined its priorities, initially identified in 2023 through a “double materiality” approach, in light of current strategies, corporate commitments, and stakeholder expectations. Through this double materiality analysis, Şekerbank conducted risk and opportunity assessments for the areas it has designated as high priority.

Thus, high-priority and strategically important points were subjected to a comprehensive assessment.

Şekerbank actively participated in the activities of the “Sustainability Working Group” and the “Climate Transformation Finance Technical Sub-Working Group” established by the Banks Association of Turkey (TBB). These platforms are viewed as valuable opportunities for Şekerbank to engage with stakeholders within the banking sector and share expertise in sustainable banking. While contributing to sectoral research on Climate Transformation finance, Şekerbank also participated in the development and calculation of the Green Asset Ratio (GAR), which is one of the key performance indicators used for classifying sustainable finance.

The 10th Sustainable Finance Forum, organized by BCSD Turkey since 2013 and supported by Şekerbank, was held at Borsa Istanbul in collaboration with Global Compact Turkey. During the Forum, Şekerbank’s Executive Vice President Fatma Nur Çetinel delivered a speech titled “Impact Investments: Sustainable Finance Strategies Shaping the Future” as part of the panel discussion.

Şekerbank continued to provide products and services to its customers while engaging with stakeholders through various collaborations. The bank signed a protocol with İhracatı Geliştirme A.Ş. (İGE) to support female SME exporters and exporters with a female employee ratio of over 50%, and empowered women to take a more active role in business life by increasing their participation in the workforce and enhancing their competitiveness.

The Empowerment and Access to Employment of Disaster-Affected Software Developer Youth Project enhances the role of women in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields, fostering economic growth and social benefits. Şekerbank is implementing a project in collaboration with SistersLab to facilitate employment opportunities for women affected by disasters.

To support renewable energy investments, Şekerbank provided financing support to customers receiving solar energy system (SPP) installation services through its partnership with İklimsa. In collaboration with Schneider Electric, the bank aimed to offer technical and financial assistance to projects focused on energy efficiency, renewable energy, and decarbonization.

How did Şekerbank identify and work on strategic business opportunities to increase positive and reduce negative impacts?

In its 2025 PRB Impact Report Şekerbank reports that it identified and worked on strategic business opportunities to increase positive and reduce negative impacts as follows:

Şekerbank has established long-term relationships with development-oriented international financial institutions since its inception. Its extensive expertise in SME and agricultural banking, along with its ability to reach rural populations, is highly valued by these institutions. With a strong focus on SME, tradesmen, and small business banking—core areas of its operations—Şekerbank continues to serve as a bridge bank to facilitate access to rural areas, earning recognition from development-oriented international financial institutions. In addition to participating in the Foreign Trade Guarantee Programs of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) of the World Bank, Şekerbank utilizes long-term foreign funds obtained through its sustained relationships with international financial institutions to support sustainable development in Turkey.

In 2024, Şekerbank signed a significant international cooperation agreement that highlights the global importance of its inclusive social and environmental banking approach, which it implements as a local bank serving all of Turkey. Led by the Dutch Entrepreneurial Development Bank (FMO) and involving six international development organizations, Şekerbank secured a syndicated loan of approximately USD 160 million with a 5-year maturity. In addition to FMO, the partnership includes Proparco, a subsidiary of the French Development Agency (AFD), the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), and six other international financial institutions such as the European Fund for Southeast Europe (EFSE), Blue Orchard Microfinancing Fund (BOMF), and ILX Fund (ILX). These funds are dedicated to environmental and social development initiatives and have been established with contributions from numerous governments and institutional investors worldwide. With EUR 25 million in financing from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), Şekerbank continues to develop funds supporting projects that enhance energy efficiency and promote the sustainable use of agricultural land. In 2024, within the scope of the USD 100 million loan obtained from the US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) for the development of the region affected by the earthquakes that occurred on February 6, 2023, Şekerbank continued to support micro, small enterprises, and SMEs in maintaining production and employment. Şekerbank provided over TL 8 billion in financing to SMEs in the earthquake-affected provinces, as well as to women-owned businesses, small businesses, and SMEs across Turkey through the DFC loan. The number of loans extended exceeded 23,000. Şekerbank remains committed to responsible lending practices in collaboration with international financial institutions and continues to contribute to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.

The table detailing the Sustainable Development Goals contributed to by Şekerbank, prepared based on its activities and key focus areas, is available in Şekerbank’s Integrated Annual Report.

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 Şekerbank, 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.sekerbank.com.tr/uploads/291/PRB Rapor_En_2025_Linkleme_Rev3.pdf

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