Our role in addressing climate change

As a global financial institution, we recognize our share of responsibilities in combating climate change by supporting the transition to a low-carbon and climate-resilient global economy, and we acknowledge that financial flows also need to be brought in line with the objectives of the Paris Agreement. The Paris Agreement charts the course of the global response to the threat of climate change with its overarching objective to limit the rise in global temperature to 2°C above pre-industrial levels and to aim to achieve a rise of no more than 1.5°C. Based on the Paris Agreement, countries have committed to implement transition plans to lower their greenhouse gas emissions.

At the Investor Update in December 2020, we announced our ambition to align our activities with the Paris Agreement objective of limiting global warming to 1.5°C. As guidance towards this goal, we are committed to develop science-based targets in 2021 and 2022 for achieving net zero emissions from our operations, supply chain and financing activities by no later than 2050, with intermediate emissions targets to be set for 2030.

During 2021 and 2022, we will therefore be developing a robust roadmap, with the target reductions to be officially certified by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) as a science-based target. By signing our commitment to the SBTi, we have confirmed that we are joining the global movement of leading companies aligning their business with the most ambitious aim of the Paris Agreement, to limit the global temperature rise to no more than 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels and transitioning to a net-zero emissions economy by 2050 for the best chance of avoiding the worst impacts of climate change.

Our climate-related achievements have been recognized by CDP, an international non-profit representing institutional investors with invested assets of over USD 100 trillion. Its aim is to offer transparent guidance to investors on climate-related opportunities and risks for companies. Our score has increased to A- from B in 2019. Credit Suisse has thereby reached CDP “Leadership level”, which is defined as “Implementing current best practices”. We are also continuing our efforts to adopt recommendations by the Financial Stability Board’s Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) (see pages 59-60).

Credit Suisse is pursuing a three-pronged approach as part of our efforts to address climate change and climate-related risks. First, we are working with our clients to support their transition to low-carbon and climate-resilient business models, and we are working to further integrate climate change into our risk management models as part of our Climate Risk Strategy program. Second, we are focusing on delivering sustainable finance solutions that help our clients achieve their goals and contribute to the realization of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) (see pages 94-95); and third, we are working on further reducing the carbon footprint of our own operations (see pages 56-59).

Our principles and our approach to climate protection are set out in our Statement on Climate Change, which describes how we intend to address climate-related risks, mobilize financial resources and reduce our banking footprint. Furthermore, in 2019, Credit Suisse signed the UN Principles for Responsible Banking (PRB), which call for the banking sector to align with the objectives of the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement. Details on our efforts to implement the PRB can be found on pages 96-101.