- BMO part of broad coalition of stakeholders, including leading
Canadian financial services and asset management firms
- Strongly supports consistent and internationally recognized
sustainability reporting standards
TORONTO, July 28, 2021 /CNW/ - BMO Financial Group
(TSX: BMO) (NYSE: BMO), is proud to support Canada's bid to be the headquarters for the
new International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB). Proposed
by the trustees of the International Financial Reporting Standards
(IFRS), ISSB aims to develop a common set of consistent, comparable
and reliable global sustainability standards to help meet
stakeholder needs.
Canada's governments and
corporate sector have a global reputation for strong business
governance and sustainable business practices, making it the ideal
location for ISSB. Under the terms of the proposal, the Canadian
Champions for Global Sustainability Standards – a coalition of
leading Canadian financial services and asset management
firms, a broad cross-sector of Canada's leading business, academic,
municipality and environmental stakeholder organizations and the
Canadian government, facilitated by the Chartered Professional
Accountants of Canada (CPA Canada)
– would jointly fund start-up operating expenses for the ISSB
headquarters.
"As part of our purpose to Boldly Grow the Good in Business and
in Life and our commitment to sustainability, and as part of our
ambition to be our clients' lead partner toward a net zero world,
BMO applauds Canada's bid to host
the headquarters of the new international sustainability standards
board. We'd also like to acknowledge CPA Canada's leadership in
facilitating the coalition to this point," said Simon Fish, Chair of the BMO Climate Institute
and Special Advisor to the CEO on ESG. "A resource-rich and
intensely biodiverse nation, Canada brings to this role its reputation as
an active supporter of international institutions, and its
expertise in standard setting and sustainability reporting, climate
change and climate-related disclosure."
A decision on the ISSB headquarters is due to be announced at
the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties
(COP26), which will be held in
Glasgow in November 2021.
BMO's commitment to sustainability and sustainability
reporting
As one of the first major banks to sign the UN Principles for
Responsible Banking, BMO is committed to aligning its business
strategy with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the
Paris Climate Agreement and relevant national and regional
frameworks. BMO is a member of UNEP-FI and signatory of the
Principles for Responsible Banking, serves as North American
representative on the Steering Committee of the Equator Principles
and is Chair of the Cross-Sector Biodiversity Initiative. In
January 2021 the bank joined the Partnership for Carbon
Accounting Financials (PCAF), a global partnership of financial
institutions that work together to develop and implement a
harmonized approach to assess and disclose the greenhouse gas (GHG)
emissions associated with their loans and investments.
In March 2021, the BMO announced
its climate ambition, including plans to build unique climate
analytics capabilities to be its clients' lead partner in the
transition to a net zero world. In the announcement the bank
introduced the BMO Climate Institute, a multi-disciplinary
organization harnessing science, analytics powered by innovative
technology and industry leading expertise. As part of its
commitment to Sustainable Finance, BMO has committed to deploying
$300 billion in sustainable lending
and underwriting by 2025.
BMO is a leader in corporate sustainability, with numerous
recognitions and numerous rankings:
- Ranked 15th on The Wall Street Journal's 2020
list of the 100 Most Sustainably Managed Companies in the World,
third overall on Social Capital – BMO was the only North American
bank included
- Top North American bank on Corporate Knights' 2021 Global 100
Most Sustainable Corporations in the World for the second year in a
row
- Ranked in the top 10 per cent of banks globally on the 2020 Dow
Jones Sustainability Index, and the top North American bank
- Scored an A- on the 2020 CDP Climate Change disclosure
- Ethisphere® Institute's 2020 list of the World's
Most Ethical Companies®
- Corporate Knights 2021 Best 50 Corporate Citizens in
Canada
- Joint winner of Environmental Finance's 2021 Lead Manager of
the Year, Social Bonds – Local Authority/Municipality category
For more information on BMO's commitment to a sustainable
future, please visit the bank's Sustainability Report. To
learn more about sustainable finance at BMO click here. For BMO's
climate ambition, visit our Climate page.
For more information about Canada's bid to host ISSB headquarters visit
CPA Canada.
About BMO Financial Group
Serving customers for 200 years and counting, BMO is a highly
diversified financial services provider - the 8th largest bank, by
assets, in North America. With total assets of $950
billion as of April 30, 2021, and a team of diverse and
highly engaged employees, BMO provides a broad range of personal
and commercial banking, wealth management and investment banking
products and services to more than 12 million customers and
conducts business through three operating groups: Personal and
Commercial Banking, BMO Wealth Management and BMO Capital
Markets.
SOURCE BMO Financial Group