Cambridge & Counties Bank has achieved B Corp Certification, one of the most comprehensive and prestigious independent assessments that a business is meeting high standards of verified performance, accountability, and transparency.
Cambridge & Counties Bank was co-founded by Trinity Hall and the College has a 50% share.
The bank becomes one of the very few in the UK to become a Certified B Corporation. The assessment is run by B Lab UK, a non-profit network.
In order to be certified, a company must demonstrate high social and environmental performance by achieving a B Impact Assessment score of 80 or above and passing an in-depth risk review. Cambridge & Counties Bank itself scored 92.8, outperforming the banking sector on its impact on the environment, customers, and its people.
As a Certified B Corporation, Cambridge & Counties Bank has adopted specific wording into its Articles of Association to reflect a commitment to creating a material positive impact on society and the environment and to consider the impact of its decisions on all of its stakeholders, including employees and suppliers.
B Corp Certification status supports the bank’s long established ESG programme. For the third year running in 2022, for instance, it was independently accredited as Carbon Neutral Plus. It also met a pledge to increase women in senior management, with 32% female representation at the end of 2022 and a target of 40% by 2025.
Donald Kerr, Chief Executive Officer at Cambridge & Counties Bank said: “As a B Corp, we’re counted among businesses that are leading a global movement for an inclusive, equitable, and regenerative economy.
“We see it as recognition of who we are and what we have strived to achieve as a bank supporting the UK SME sector, and that as we grow, we do so in a way that is sustainable and has a positive impact on the world around us.”
Tim Harvey-Samuel, Non-executive Director and Bursar of Trinity Hall said, “Cambridge & Counties Bank’s achievement of B Corp certification is an endorsement of its differentiated approach to sustainable good practice across its business and towards its customers and employees.
“We applaud and support the strong efforts of Donald and the management team in this and are delighted to be continuing to work with the bank to progress the positive impact these policies create for its stakeholders and community.”
Founded in 2012 and owned by Trinity Hall, Cambridge and the Cambridgeshire Local Government Pension Fund, Cambridge & Counties Bank is the result of two well-respected institutions who joined together to create a responsible expert-banking specialist. The main aim was to bring back all the great elements of a traditional bank, combining these with all the speed, efficiency and innovation of a contemporary lender. The result? A fast and flexible way to invest, and save safely.
