The Social Impact Banking (SIB) initiative of UniCredit in Italy has approved € 72.9 million of impact financing to date, including 31 impact financing loans amounting to € 32.6 million and 2,050 microcredit loans amounting to € 40.3 million. A total of € 47.8 million have been disbursed. See more details on the key achievements below. 

UniCredit is extending the initiative on a gradual basis to the other markets of the Group in 2019, including: Germany, Austria, Serbia, Croatia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania, Turkey, the Czech Republic and Slovakia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina. The SIB model to foster positive social impacts will be adapted in each market according to local needs. The wider rollout of SIB in 2019 is fully in line with the initial ambitions of the project and with UniCredit’s strong commitment to helping to develop the communities in which the Bank operates. The further rollout will also be supported by a progressive sale of UniCredit’s local art collections in Italy, Germany and Austria, with initial proceeds of around € 50 million. Some art pieces will be donated to local museums. The proceeds will primarily be reinvested in SIB initiatives. The rest of the proceeds will be dedicated to other relevant projects, including the local support of young artists.

Jean Pierre Mustier, UniCredit CEO, commented: “At UniCredit, we are proud that all our actions are guided by a strong sense of ethics, based on clear values. One of these is the importance of supporting our local communities everywhere where the Bank is present. Our Social Impact Banking initiative has achieved great results so far in Italy and we are now extending it to other markets with the same core purpose of looking beyond economic returns in our investments to achieve a tangible positive impact on society. We will gradually sell our art collections to support this initiative, giving some of our art pieces to local museums and investing in younger artists.”

Social Impact Banking is UniCredit's commitment to building a fairer and more inclusive society. Its aim is to identify, finance and promote people and enterprises that can have a positive social impact. The approach seeks to generate both, economic returns of our investments and wider societal benefits. As well as continuously providing credit to projects and organisations that are generally excluded from traditional banking products and services, SIB allows UniCredit to share its financial and business know-how through educational initiatives dedicated to micro-entrepreneurs, social enterprises and vulnerable or disadvantaged groups, including young people, the elderly and others at risk of social exclusion. The engagement of UniCredit’s employees is a key driving force behind the training and support activities provided through SIB, which help build valuable networks within the communities where the Bank operates, bringing people together to share positive experiences and raising awareness of relevant projects to increase their potential societal impact. SIB also has a strong focus on monitoring and the measurement of outcomes, which is essential for ensuring the sustainable growth of both the sponsored projects and the Bank’s investment returns. The aim is to measure not only the direct, but also the indirect positive impacts generated by the projects backed in terms of social and economic well-being within UniCredit’s communities.

Overview of Social Impact Banking achievements in Italy in 2018

• € 72.9 million of impact financing approved of which € 47.8 million have been disbursed
• This includes the approval of 31 impact financing loans amounting to € 32.6 million and 2,050 microcredit loans amounting to € 40.3 million
• 86 partners on-boarded
• 15,800 students involved in financial education programmes provided in the academic year 2017-18 and 14,900 students involved in the academic year 2018-19, including over 9,500 new students bringing the total number of unique participants served to more than 25,300 to date
• 1,245,000 certified training hours delivered, out of which 840,000 hours were dedicated to project-based learning
• 76 per cent of students say they were satisfied or highly satisfied with the programme(s) and 85 per cent considered the contents either useful or very useful
• 370 UniCredit tutors involved in training delivery.

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About UniCredit

UniCredit is a simple successful pan-European Commercial Bank, with a fully plugged in CIB, delivering a unique Western, Central and Eastern European network to its extensive client franchise: 26 million clients.
UniCredit  offers both local and international expertise to its clients, providing them with unparalleled access to leading banks in its 14 core markets through its European banking network: Italy, Germany, Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia and Turkey. Leveraging on an international network of representative offices and branches, UniCredit serves clients in another 18 countries worldwide.

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