Canara Bank

In terms of senior leadership accountability, the responsibility for sustainability issues within Canara Bank lies with the sustainable development & corporate social responsibility (SD & CSR) committee of the board.

No leading practices were identified for the financial institution in the respecting planetary boundaries measurement area.

Canara Bank discloses the amount of finance it directs towards vulnerable groups such as small and marginal farmers, landless labourers, and artisans. Furthermore, the bank discloses the amount of financing to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). Canara Bank provide also evidence of a grievance mechanism accessible to all workers, external individuals, and communities to raise human rights and bribery and corruption complaints.

There is no evidence that Canara Bank links the remuneration of its executive or management teams to sustainability performance criteria. Canara Bank has an opportunity to provide a public statement regarding gender equality and women’s empowerment for its operations. In terms of female representation in leadership positions, women are underrepresented on the board of directors where only two out of eleven board members are women. Furthermore, it has an opportunity to disclose the proportion of women in senior leadership roles as well as how it addresses any gender pay gaps. Moreover, the bank has an opportunity to describe its engagement approach on sustainability themes and impact topics with clients.

Canara Bank could disclose a target to reach net-zero financed emissions by 2050 as well as the key sectors and companies it has identified as priorities to engage with on climate change, specifically on the alignment with the Paris Agreement. It can improve its performance by publishing its financing activities devoted to climate and nature regenerative solutions. Additionally, Canara Bank could commit to minimising its negative impacts or financing regenerative solutions.

Although Canara Bank has human rights policy covering its operations, this is not available in the public domain. Moreover, the bank has an opportunity to describe a comprehensive process for identifying its human rights risks and impacts across all its activities, especially its financing activities. Canara Bank can improve its performance on diversity and inclusion by providing evidence of the proportion of its total direct operations workforce for each employee category by age group and gender. To provide transparency on financial inclusivity, the financial institution has an opportunity to disclose the amount of finance directed towards low-income developing countries. To conclude, there is no evidence that the financial institution has a publicly available policy statement committing it to respect the health and safety of workers.