Founding Signatory to the Principles for Responsible Banking

Banco de la Producción, S.A. (Banpro) Grupo Promerica is a private company founded in November 1991, with the purpose of brokering public deposits to invest in a wide variety of businesses, therefore, stimulating Nicaragua’s economy.

Over the years since its founding, Banpro Grupo Promerica has experienced sustained growth in its assets and deposits, hence becoming the nation’s largest bank, and relative to Central American banks. To achieve this privileged position Banpro Grupo Promerica has developed a service-based growth strategy with added value to customers, building a long-lasting relationship with its customers.

Banpro Grupo Promerica has more than 3,504 location points across the country and a wide range of products and services.

Summary of sustainability strategy

One of Banpro Grupo Promerica’s key business strategies is sustainability. The bank is contributing to sustainability goals set by the 2030 UN Agenda by actively participating and impacting the economy, society and environments in the markets that it serves.

The bank’s sustainability strategy is concentrated in seven dimensions:

  1. Sustainable products
  2. Sustainable business chains
  3. Environmental and social management in its portfolio
  4. Education and financial inclusion
  5. Corporate Social Responsibility programs
  6. Sustainable institutional investments
  7. Social benefit created by digital innovation.

Why the bank has joined UNEP FI as a member

The Principles for Responsible Banking were launched to support banks to develop and implement their sustainable strategies in their respective communities. It is for this reason that Banpro Grupo Promerica, with a firm commitment to its communities and environment, decided to become a Founding Signatory and member.

“We live in times where digital media constantly reminds us of the consequences of environmental destruction. This has convinced us, at Banpro Grupo Promerica that sustainability must be at the core of our organization; therefore, we must be at the forefront of changing the attitudes of our employees and customers by adopting sustainable actions for the benefit of everyone and most importantly future generations,” Juan Carlos Argüello Robelo, CEO, Banpro Grupo Promerica

 

Sustainable Strategy

We have developed a green loan portfolio with the objective of helping our clients to reduce the risk associated with climate change. This portfolio includes Renewable Energy Projects, Energy Efficiency Projects and Smart Agriculture Projects as well.

 

Also as a sustainable financial product, we have developed an environmental trust fund and its main objective is to protect and recover the basin of Esteli’s River where more than 300,000 people depend on it.

The recovery of the Basin included:

  • Reforestation of 1400 ha of royal cedar in farms dedicated to livestock that will capture at least 150k tons of CO2 equivalent to the emission of 14k vehicles per year;
  • Smart climate agriculture projects;
  • Social projects such as environmental education in rural schools;

The trust fund has won recognition from Premios Latinoamerica Verde in Guayaquil, Ecuador and was invited to participate as a Guest of the World Water Forum in Brazil on March 18.

Products that expand our Customer Base and Contributes to our Sustainability goal:

  1. Credit Programs:
    – SME
    – Social and Medium “affordable” housing
    – Municipal Infrastructure
  2. Products Designed to Incentivize the value of Savings:
    – Chiqui-Savings
    – Youth Debit Card
    – University Debit Cards
    – Goal Savings
  3. Sustainable Business Chains: Emphasis on growth, with keen attention in the “supply chain” in the agricultural sector, from sowing, production, and eventually to the export of the product, agro-industry.
  4. Environmental and social risk management system:
    Since 2011, Grupo Promerica has included in its credit approval process the Environmental and social risk management system, standardising it in all countries in 2014. Promerica Group classifies each credit business operation according to the potential environmental and social risks. We also evaluate how our clients manage these identified social and environmental risks. And this system allows us to evaluate our commercial client’s impact socially and environmentally, therefore permitting us to identify the risks and consequently reduce those impacts on our credit portfolio.
  5. Education and financial inclusion:
    We have an education and financial inclusion department that focuses on the following points:
    a. Increase public awareness on financial decisions to our citizens;
    b. Financial education to students and women which gives them the necessary tools to have and maintain a family business.
    c. It has trained rural teachers with sustainable subjects that later on will be transmitted to their students in rural schools.
    d. It advises employees of different companies on how to manage their family Budget.
    e. They advise small SMEs companies on business management.
    f. The bank has created an electronic wallet apps that with our Bank’s Agencies has helped us bring more than 170 thousand people into the formal banking system in Nicaragua.
  6. Social and Business Responsibility programs:
    Health Programs. Through Fundacion Ortiz Gurdian “FOG” over 63,000 women have been helped by the Prevention, care and treatment programs for breast cancer.Education: We have supported the education of students of small-income families.
  7.  Sustainable Investments in our institution:
    We have invested in sustainable projects that reduce our environmental impact such as renewable energy projects in our branches and we have reduced plastic consumption among our coworkers.
  8. Social Benefit created by digital innovation:
    Through digital innovation, we have a banking presence in rural areas that has benefitted thousands of clients in the country.With digital transformation the bank will:
    Reduce barriers into the formal banking system by becoming more accessible and available to all.
    Contribute to financial education and the welfare of societies.Banpro has innovated and built the largest customer service network in our country; providing to our clients:
    – Branch Offices
    – Non-Banking Correspondents – Agente Banpro
    – E-wallet
    – ATMs
    – Digital Banking
    – Chatbot
    – Social Media