Making a Difference: Why Sustainable Finance Is Here to Stay

What is sustainable finance, what significance does it have for clients and what specific products, solutions and initiatives help integrate sustainability into daily business? Here, Markus Ecker, Head of Sustainable Finance at Raiffeisen Bank International (RBI), considers these key questions and provides valuable insights.

Could you briefly explain what sustainable finance means for RBI? 

Sustainable finance is a strategic priority for all client segments like private individuals, small and large corporates, financial institutions and sovereigns. It’s all about aligning our business with environmental and social commitments while helping our clients make their transitions. 

We have done a huge amount of ESG related transactions in the last years, issued many green bonds, calculated the carbon footprint of private individual clients in many countries, have rolled out ESG policies, created sectoral strategies and developed an ESG scoring model to assess risks. 

Right now, we are working on our newly developed transition policy to reduce our financed emissions progressively until 2030.

What specific sustainable finance products and solutions does RBI currently offer? 

For our corporate and institutional clients, we offer a range of advisory services to help them find the sustainable financing instruments that fit their individual needs and capabilities. 

Based on this, we originate and structure green, social, sustainable or ESG KPI-linked bonds, loans, “Schuldschein” loans and guarantees. Furthermore, we advise clients to improve their ESG performance and ESG Ratings. 

When it comes to retail banking, our climate and environmental business strategy puts the needs of our customers at the center. Together with our network banks and the retail team in our head office in Vienna we focus on solutions that support both financial wellbeing and a more sustainable lifestyle. 

One key group solution is RaiCare, which helps customers manage their finances better. It tracks income and spending, helps prepare for unexpected expenses, predicts future financial trends and offers monthly reports to keep them on track. 

We also have a carbon footprint tool integrated into daily banking that gives customers a clear overview of their CO2 emissions and provides useful reports to help reduce their environmental impact. These solutions demonstrate how we combine financial health with climate action to help our customers build a better future.

What role do green bonds and social bonds play in RBI's product portfolio? 

A central role, as sustainability bonds directly align sustainability with business benefits. At RBI, we are proud to be pioneers in green bond issuance for both institutional and private investors in Austria. 

We launched our green bond issuance programme in 2018 to promote sustainable lending in Austria and Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), based on the green bond framework we introduced that same year. In 2023, we expanded our efforts by establishing a sustainability bond framework, allowing us to issue green, social or sustainability bonds as needed.

We also played a key role in developing sustainable bond markets across the CEE region, supporting local banks in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Croatia, Romania and Slovakia in launching their first green and/or sustainability bonds. Together with our local banks, we became the largest green bond issuer in the region in 2024.

Beyond issuing bonds ourselves, we leverage our experience as a pioneer to advise and guide clients through every step of preparing for their green, social, or sustainability bond issuance. A standout example of this commitment is our role as ESG coordinator and bookrunner for the first-ever inaugural sustainability bond of the federal state of Lower Austria in 2024, the first of such issuance by any Austrian federal state.

What are RBI's strengths when it comes to sustainable finance? 

One of our key strengths is the collective knowledge in our Sustainable Finance department, which brings together diverse topics and expertise. Our team is living proof of the power of diversity, bringing together individuals with 14 diverse cultural backgrounds, speaking 17 languages.  

This setup allows us to efficiently leverage synergies and interdisciplinary skills. In addition, we launched the ESG Ambassador Network in 2019 to foster sustainability expertise within the network banks in the CEE region. 

Our Sustainable Finance team coordinates this network of representatives from each network bank, ensuring a consistent and unified approach across the group and all business lines, and providing a vital platform for sharing information and best practices

What developments do you anticipate in the field of sustainable finance? 

Sustainable finance is here to stay. Positive sustainable development is essential for the long-term growth of our clients and of RBI. But it’s not going to be an easy journey. 

One major challenge is the substantial investments required for the transition, even when these investments do not guarantee higher income or lower costs, which are usually essential for a positive business case. 

We’re seeing that ESG risks and the overall sustainability performance of borrowers and issuers is becoming more important than ever. In this context, transition finance is a key factor, especially for high-emitting sectors that need support in their decarbonisation. 

Europe’s Clean Industrial Deal, alongside similar efforts from other countries, is expected to further accelerate this shift, calling for capital that drives climate action and social impact.

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