Natixis confirms in Portugal the focus on a “green axis” – O Jornal Económico
The award of the Luso-French Trophies in the “Sustainable Development” category made Natixis in Portugal proud, says Etienne Huret, director general of the company to Jornal Económico. “It is the recognition of the work we have been developing towards sustainability, which is also a priority included in the Strategic Plan 2020-2024 of Groupe BPCE, which Natixis in Portugal is part of. A work that is the result of the contribution of our employees, who every day integrate and promote our initiatives, driving their continuity and impact on the community”, he says, attributing that the sustainable strategy” assumes a central role and is in the basis of all business lines and group entities”.
At a global level, Etienne Huret explains that Natixis is guided by a “green axis”, which is based on a focus on issues related to the environment and, equally, on sustainable methods and strategies in the financial and communications areas. of information . He states that the concern with the climate is one of the pillars of the sustainable development strategy and that it has been achieved, for example, “reduction in the use of disposable plastic, installation of water pressure reducers in all bathrooms in the building; reducing the number of printers in the building and introducing recycled paper; or by the acquisition of an electric vehicle fleet and the creation of an application to manage it”. He adds that there is “a constant concern with carbon losses, which is materialized in an internal audit, in the sense of understanding the impact that the building has on the environment and designing actions in order to reduce that same impact. Furthermore, in October, we created a Green Community, a space promoted by a group of employees who share news, tips and good practices in the area of sustainability”.
On sustainability, the manager recalls that, in 2019, Natixis and Groupe BPCE signed a set of Principles for Responsible Banking before the United Nations, committing to the Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement on Climate Change . With the signing of this document, the two entities have joined a group of 130 banks from around the world, representing more than 43 billion in assets, and are committed to playing a crucial role in helping to ensure a sustainable future. Natixis has also implemented the Green Weighting Factor model, through which it assesses the environmental impact of each financial transaction it carries out.
Etienne Huret, questioned about the importance of nearshoring in Portugal, said that when they decided to move towards such an approach, they were “surprised by the very positive result of this investment in talent from Portugal”. “Natixis arrived in Porto in 2017, with the objective of recruiting 640 people in the Information Technology area and, today, we are more than 1,350 working to guarantee and transform Natixis’ operations globally and for the Group’s Strategic Plan BPCE. In February 2020, we expanded our hiring profiles into areas such as Management, Economics, Finance and Law. By the end of the year, we want to reach 1,500 employees, by hiring talent with different origins, profiles and seniority levels, including young people eligible for professional internships at the Employment and Vocational Training Institute”, he says, ensuring that this remains the focus in the future, “continue to make the Porto hub an example of innovation at a global level, in constant learning and evolution”.