In Washington, DC:
Lucie Giraud, IFC
Phone:  +1 (202) 294-0504
Email:  lgiraud@ifc.org


London, June 7, 2007 -- The Financial Times and IFC today announced the winners of the 2007 FT Sustainable Banking Awards, the leading global awards program designed to recognize banks that have shown leadership and innovation in integrating social, environmental, and corporate governance objectives into their operations.

Now in their second year, the awards were created by the Financial Times in association with IFC, the private sector arm of the World Bank Group. Responses this year surpassed the inaugural awards in 2006, drawing 151 entries from more than 100 banks in 51 countries. This year, for the first time, the awards also highlight regional leadership under the Emerging Markets category.

The 2007 winners are:
Sustainable Bank of the Year
ABN AMRO, Netherlands

Runner-up: Barclays, United Kingdom


Emerging Markets Sustainable Bank of the Year
ABN AMRO Bank India

Regional emerging markets awards:
·        Asia – ABN AMRO Bank India

·        Eastern Europe – Dexia Banka Slovensko, Slovak Republic

·        Latin America – Banco do Brasil

·        Middle East & Africa – Nedbank, South Africa


Sustainable Bankers of the Year
Banamex / Citi Compartamos, Mexico

Runner-up: Center-Invest Bank, Russia


Sustainable Deal of the Year
Deutsche Bank/Goldman Sachs (International Finance Facility for Immunisation)

Runner-up: Industrial Bank, China (Financing for energy efficiency projects)


Achievement in Carbon Finance
Raiffeisen Zentralbank, Austria (Nitrous oxide emission reduction project)

Runner-up: Banco Sumitomo Mitsui Brasileiro, Brazil (CER transaction involving 10 CDM projects)

"The winners of the FT Sustainable Banking Awards showcase how banks can successfully meet social, environmental, and financial goals," said Lionel Barber, Editor of the Financial Times. "As the response to these awards continues to grow, in emerging as well as developed markets, we hope more banks around the world will be encouraged to adopt transparent, sustainable practices."

Lars Thunell, IFC Executive Vice President and CEO, said, "These awards send an important signal to the banking sector. Sustainable finance, especially in emerging markets, is a proven strategy for creating value and opportunity for clients, shareholders, and the poor."

The awards were presented at a gala dinner at the Landmark in London attended by more than 250 senior bankers and decision-makers in the area of sustainability.  James Cameron, Vice Chairman of Climate Change Capital, was keynote speaker. The event followed a one-day Sustainable Banking Conference organized by the Financial Times and IFC.

The judging panel, which included leading figures involved in sustainable finance and development, initially narrowed down the entries to a short-list of five banks for each of the categories of awards, before selecting the overall winners. Eight banks, two from each region, were short-listed for the emerging markets category.

The judges for the awards:
·        John Willman, U.K. Business Editor, Financial Times (Panel Co-Chair)
·        Lars Thunell, Executive Vice President and CEO, IFC (Panel Co-Chair)
·        Paul Clements-Hunt, Head of Unit, United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI)
·        Sergio Rosa, CEO, PREVI
·        Paul Grimes, COO, FTSE Group
·        Tessa Tennant, Chair, Association for Sustainable and Responsible Investment in Asia

For more details on the FT Sustainable Banking Awards, please visit www.ft.com/sustainablebanking.
Pictures of the FT Sustainable Banking Conference and Awards will be available within 24 hours of the end of the event at www.ifc.org/ifcext.


The Financial Times Group, one of the world’s leading business information companies, aims to provide a broad range of business information and services to the growing audience of internationally minded business people.  The FT Group includes:

1.        The Financial Times, one of the world’s leading business newspapers, is recognized internationally for its authority, integrity, and accuracy.  Providing extensive news, comment, and analysis, the newspaper is printed in 23 cities across the globe, has a daily circulation of over 445,000 and a readership of more than 1.4 million people worldwide.

2.        FT.com is one of the world's leading business information Web sites, and the Internet partner of the FT newspaper. Since its relaunch in May 2002, the site has continued to be the definitive home for business intelligence on the Web, providing an essential source of news, comment, data, and analysis for the global business community. FT.com attracts 4.8 million unique monthly users (ABC electronic figures Jan 06), generating 41 million page views, and has 84,000 subscribers. FT.com broke even in December 2002.

3.        The FT Group’s pan-European network of national business newspapers and online services, including France’s leading business newspaper and website, Les Echos and lesechos.fr.  In February 2000, the FT launched a new German language newspaper, FT Deutschland, with a fully integrated online business news and data service.

4.        Through FT Interactive Data, the FT Group is one of the world’s leading sources of securities pricing and specialist financial information to global institutional, professional, and individual investors.  Its products include eSignal, an online real-time streaming quotation service for brokers and active traders.

5.        FT Business, which produces specialist information on the retail, personal, and institutional finance industries. It publishes the United Kingdom’s premier personal finance magazine, Investors Chronicle, and The Banker, Money Management, and Financial Adviser for professional advisers.

6.        The Financial Times Group also has a stake in a number of joint ventures, including:
·        FTSE International, a joint venture with the London Stock Exchange.
·        Vedomosti, Russia’s leading business newspaper and a partnership venture with Dow Jones and Independent Media
·        A 50 percent stake in BDFM, publishers of South Africa’s leading financial newspapers and websites.
·        A 50 percent stake in The Economist Group, which publishes the world’s leading weekly business and current affairs journal.
·        A 13.85 percent stake in Business Standard, one of India’s leading financial newspapers.

The FT Group is part of Pearson plc, the international media group.


About IFC
IFC, the private sector arm of the World Bank Group, promotes open and competitive markets in developing countries.  IFC supports sustainable private sector companies and other partners in generating productive jobs and delivering basic services, so that people have opportunities to escape poverty and improve their lives. Through FY06, IFC Financial Products has committed more than $56 billion in funding for private sector investments and mobilized an additional $25 billion in syndications for 3,531 companies in 140 developing countries. IFC Advisory Services and donor partners have provided more than $1 billion in program support to build small enterprises, to accelerate private participation in infrastructure, to improve the business enabling environment, to increase access to finance, and to strengthen environmental and social sustainability. For more information, please visit www.ifc.org.