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Loans News - Last Updated Monday 16th July 2007

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Co-op turns away unethical loans

Monday 16th July 2007

The Co-operative Bank has turned away £700 million in loans for ethical reasons in the last 15 years.

The bank, which markets itself as the high-street leader for ethical banking, has rejected loans from companies involved in fossil fuels, arms dealing, tobacco and those linked to human and animal rights violations, as part of its ethical and ecological policy.

Ethical banking is a growing area - the market value of ethical finance grew from £5.2 billion in 1999 to £11.6 billion in 2005 and a survey by the Ethical Investment Research Service in 2004 reported that two-thirds of people wanted their investments to be more ethically sound.

The Co-operative Bank's profits grew by 11.7 per cent in 2006 and many customers join the bank solely because of its ethical policies.
The bank plans a major expansion programme, and recently announced plans for 12 new Corporate Banking Centres over the next five years.

Jonathon Porritt, the founder and director of Forum for the Future said: "The Co-operative Bank's Ethical Policy remains at the leading edge of corporate ethics, and has provided a clear challenge to the rest of the sector that there are certain lines that should not be crossed.

"To have declined £325 million of loans based on customers' ecological concerns, of which the largest portion concerns saying 'no' the extraction and processing of fossil fuels, is noteworthy at a time when we all need to consider the enormous changes that will be required to challenge climate change."