Sustainable bank sees profit and usage increase in 2010

Sustainable banking is offering a powerful answer to the banking crisis as one of the leaders in the field announces a 20% increase in operating profit.

Triodos Bank maintained a pattern of long term growth in 2010, providing strong evidence that sustainable banking is a powerful answer to the financial crisis. In its aftermath more and more people and businesses are choosing a sustainable home for their finances.

Funds entrusted to the Triodos Group, comprising Triodos Bank, Triodos Investment Funds and Triodos Private Banking grew by 15% in 2010 to 5.6 billion. And lending, which is exclusively to sustainable businesses, was up by 28% to €2.1 billion.

While customer numbers increased by over 43,000 to 285,000, an increase of 18%. Net profit in 2010 was €11.5 million, reflecting a 20% increase on 2009.

‘European governments are shifting their focus away from solving our biggest social and environmental problems in favour of pressing economic priorities. This means cost cutting measures that affect sustainability policy and slow down the necessary shift to a low carbon economy,’ said Peter Blom, Triodos Bank chief executive officer.

‘In their place business and civil society are increasingly acting as the key players in sustainability. We are at the forefront of these efforts and plan to accelerate our lending to such projects,’ he added.

Excluding unforeseen circumstances, Triodos Bank expects to achieve a positive result in 2011.  It will actively contribute to a more sustainable future, by responding to ongoing social, environmental and cultural challenges.

Triodos Bank's equity base grew by 14% to €362 million in 2010. By developing its already strong capital base, Triodos Bank is building a solid foundation for future growth. Its solvency ratio (or BIS-ratio) is 14.7% (2009: 16.5%).

Triodos Bank already complies with both new capital and liquidity requirements, as recently published by the Basel Committee, and better known as Basel III. The regulations are required to be fully implemented by 2019.

Triodos Investment Management is responsible for 20 funds, totalling €1.8 billion assets under management. Total growth of the investment funds was €166 million in 2010, up 10%, against 31% in 2009. The impact of uncertainty around tax benefits for the Triodos Groenfonds and Triodos Cultuurfonds in The Netherlands was responsible, in part, for lower growth.

Triodos Investment Funds invest in sustainable sectors such as microfinance, organic agriculture, cultural projects, renewable energy, sustainable real estate, and stock-market listed companies who are screened for their social and environmental performance.

By the end of 2010 Triodos Bank, including its climate and energy funds under management, financed more than 300 renewable energy projects across Europe. Together they have a generating capacity of 1,624 MW of clean, green energy. This includes 171 wind farms, 98 solar plants and various small biomass and hydro projects, producing approximately 4.1 billion kWh per annum, or the equivalent of the electricity consumption of around 1.2 million European households. This green power avoids over 1.6 million tonnes of CO2 emissions every year.

Through specialised microfinance funds Triodos provided finance to over 85 emerging and well established microfinance institutions in 43 countries, in 2010. The Bank also held equity stakes in 19 leading and innovative microfinance institutions. The microfinance institutions in its portfolio reached 7.2 million loan