Bank Australia is a customer-owned responsible bank with over 400 staff and 135.000 customers in Australia. As of June 2018, it held AU$ 5.7 billion (€3.5 billion) in total assets.
Bank Australia’s responsible banking policy excludes lending to companies that produce or trade in armaments. It has this policy because it recognises the significant harm caused by companies that produce weapons “designed and manufactured to cause maximum harm to people who are often civilians. These include nuclear weapons, cluster munitions, biological and chemical weapons and landmines.”[1]
The policy applies to all of Bank Australia’s investments, which consist mostly of lending.[2]
Bank Australia uses a list of excluded sectors to implement the policy based on Australian and New Zealand Standard Industry Classification Codes.[3]
Website: https://www.bankaust.com.au/ht
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bank-australia/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/bankaust
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bankaust
[1] Bank Australia, “We don’t lend to corporations that produce or sell armaments”, Bank Australia website (https://www.bankaust.com.au/responsible-banking/prosperity/responsible-banking-policy/what-we-do-and-dont-lend-to/arms-industry/), viewed 16 August 2019; Bank Australia, “Our responsible banking policy”, 2018, available at https://www.bankaust.com.au/globalassets/responsible-banking/rb-policy/responsible-banking-policy-statement.pdf, viewed 16 August 2019.
[2] Bank Australia, written response to PAX dated 15 August 2019; Bank Australia , “Our responsible banking policy”, 2018, available at https://www.bankaust.com.au/globalassets/responsible-banking/rb-policy/responsible-banking-policy-statement.pdf, viewed 16 August 2019.
[3] Bank Australia, written response to PAX dated 9 August 2019.