Sustainability Policies & Promotion System

SMBC Group has established the Sustainability Committee, an internal committee of the Board of Directors, as a supervisory body and the Sustainability Promotion Committee as an executive body to manage our sustainability initiatives and to deliberate on responses to environmental and social issues. The Sustainability Committee deliberates on matters related to the progress of the Group's sustainability promotion measures, matters related to domestic and overseas trends surrounding sustainability, and other important matters related to sustainability. It reports and provides advices to the Board of Directors on a regular basis. The Sustainability Promotion Committee, meanwhile, deliberates and decides on plans to realize sustainability. These plans are put together in a groupwide basis by the Corporate Sustainability Department of SMFG.

In addition, the Risk Committee, which is an internal committee of the Board of Directors, acknowledges the environment and risks surrounding the Group, and discusses matters related to the handling of risk appetite, matters related to the implementation structure for risk management, and other important matters related to risk management, as well as giving advices to the Board of Directors. Regarding climate change issues, the Sustainability Committee deliberates on the formulation and progress of overall climate change countermeasures. At the Risk Committee, meanwhile, the Group CRO (Chief Risk Officer) regularly reports on the awareness of environment and risks, risk appetite in connection with climate change issues, and the execution of risk management measures related to climate change countermeasures. The Risk Committee deliberates on these matters and provides advices to the Board of Directors.

For specific transactions with substantial environmental and social risks that would likely impact enterprise value adversely or result in a loss of trust in SMBC Group, a body in which Management Committee officers participate, from the perspective of complex risk management, discusses whether to proceed with the transaction as necessary.

In SMBC Group’s Group Credit Policy, which contains overall financing policy, guidelines and rules, the Group declares not to extend any credit considered problematic in terms of public responsibility, or which may have a negative impact on the environment.

Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, which handles the Group's core credit operations, assess risks from both environmental and social perspectives for corporate and project-related matters and use the assessment results as a factor in credit decisions. We also conduct engagement with customers based on those results.

For large-scale projects which may potentially exert a major impact on the environment and society, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation will conduct appropriate assessments by performing Environmental and Social Due Diligence Project.

Through this, we expect project companies to conduct activities for environmental and social consideration, including climate change and human rights, such as addressing the TCFD Recommendations and respecting the FPIC (free, prior and informed consent) of local residents.

For further details about Environmental and Social Responsibility for Large-scale Development Projects, please refer to the following link.

SMBC Group has introduced policies for businesses and sectors which are likely to have significant impacts on the environment and society. These policies are independently determined in relation to risk management. They are rolled out to SMBC Group companies, including Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, SMBC Trust Bank, Sumitomo Mitsui Finance and Leasing Company and SMBC Nikko Securities, in line with their businesses, and to enhance their risk management system continuously. The application of this Policy remains subject to compliance with local legal requirements and policies.

SMBC Group will not provide support that falls into the following categories:

The business and sectors for which we establish individual policies are as follows.