The Los Angeles Post

Fifth Third Publishes 2020 Environmental, Social and Governance Report

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Report demonstrates how Fifth Third lives its purpose and affirms commitment to customers, communities, employees, shareholders and regulators

CINCINNATI, June 30, 2021 – Fifth Third Bancorp (Nasdaq: FITB) today published its 2020 Environmental, Social and Governance Report, highlighting its commitment to doing well by doing good. The 2020 report further describes actions taken to generate long-term sustainable value for all Fifth Third stakeholders. It follows Fifth Third’s inaugural report, published in September 2020.

“The 2020 ESG Report is an opportunity to discuss the progress on our ESG efforts and to demonstrate the multiple ways we live our purpose to improve lives and the well-being of our communities,” said Greg D. Carmichael, chairman and CEO, Fifth Third Bancorp. “We continue to expand our voluntary reporting and increase the transparency of our ESG actions and impact as we continually strive to be the Bank that people most value and trust.”

The contents of the ESG Report are benchmarked against established reporting frameworks such as the Global Reporting initiative, Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (now the Value Reporting Foundation), Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures and World Economic Forum’s Stakeholder Capitalism Metrics. The Bank also aligns to 12 United Nation Sustainable Development Goals. The report’s data covers the 2020 calendar year unless otherwise noted, and the narrative includes updates through June 30, 2021, where possible.

The ESG Report includes the following key highlights:

Environmental:

  • Becoming the first regional U.S. commercial bank to achieve carbon neutrality for its Scope 1, Scope 2 and Scope 3 business travel emissions.
  • Achieving $5.4 billion in sustainable financing against 2025 goal of $8 billion, which was announced in 2020.
  • Earning an A- Leadership Band rating from the CDP for the second consecutive year.
  • Joining the Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials and the Ceres Company Network.

Social:

  • Delivering $41.6 billion in community lending and investments under the Bank’s five-year Community Commitment, exceeding the $32 billion goal.
  • Setting six bold goals to support inclusion and diversity throughout our workforce and suppliers to be achieved by 2025.
  • Announcing a $2.8 billion Accelerating Racial Equity, Equality and Inclusion Initiative encompassing the communities we serve, employees and businesses.
  • Achieving a 19% year-over-year increase – to $75.4 million in 2020 – in spending with diverse suppliers.
  • Facilitating $7.4 billion in Small Business Administration Paycheck Protection Program, or PPP, loans and executing more than 150,000 hardship requests during the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • Providing $29.8 million in philanthropy in 2020.
  • Expanding employee demographic disclosures, as well as gender and minority pay equity ratios.

Governance:

  • Being named again by Ethisphere as one of the world’s most ethical companies, one of only five banks in the world to be so recognized.
  • Reporting 40% diversity among the Company’s directors by ethnicity or gender.
  • Establishing an ESG Committee accountable to the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee of the Board of Directors.

Fifth Third’s 2020 ESG Report and all related policies, procedures and programs are available on the Bank’s ESG site.