News archive - Sustainability

18.12.2020
Commerzbank among the top ten in the Gender Diversity Index
In a study by the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) on gender equality in companies, Commerzbank was ranked 10th out of almost 100 large listed companies. In addition to the proportion of female executives on management boards and supervisory boards, the index also takes into account the ratio of the average remuneration of both genders. With 73 out of 100 points in 2020 and the steady improvement compared to previous years, Commerzbank proves that it takes its responsibility for equal opportunities seriously and successfully implements measures.

11.12.2020
Declaration on the German Sustainability Code
As in previous years, Commerzbank has published
a declaration of conformity with the German Sustainability Code (DNK). The Sustainability Code describes in twenty criteria and supplementary performance indicators what constitutes the core of corporate sustainability and makes the sustainability performance of participating companies comparable. The DNK declaration also includes reporting on the National Action Plan for Business and Human Rights.
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08.12.2020
UK Modern Slavery Act Statement for 2019 published In
its human rights position, Commerzbank is committed to respecting international human rights and makes a differentiated contribution to promoting them within its sphere of influence. We report transparently on this as part of our regular sustainability reporting. In
addition, we publish the UK's Modern Slavery Act Statement annually. This describes the measures taken by the Bank to minimise human rights risks in our supply chain.
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02.12.2020
Commerzbank and comdirect are among Germany's most valuable employers
Commerzbank and comdirect have both been named companies with a "very high contribution to the common good". This is the result of a Germany-wide survey for WirtschaftWoche. A total of 2,138 regionally based companies were evaluated by residents of the respective districts. Both Commerzbank (rank 44) and comdirect (rank 346) are thus among the most valuable employers for the common good in 2020.

27.11.2020
Rising demand for responsible investments
In Commerzbank's Private and Corporate Customers segment, customers' interest in ecologically and economically responsible investments continues to grow. In our online magazine "Commerzbanker", Arno Walter, Divisional Board Member Wealth Management & Corporate Clients, and Stefanie Pietsch, Divisional Head Wealth Management, explain how Commerzbank is meeting the growing demand for sustainable products.

12.11.2020
Register now: The Main Incubator's Impact Festival
The Main Incubator, Commerzbank's research and development unit, is launching a community platform to accelerate green change with the Impact Festival in April 2021. This will be the first European online format in which sustainability pioneers such as green start-ups, corporates and venture capital investors come together to discuss and develop sustainable business models. Science, politics and education are involved in the process. Planned as a hybrid event due to Corona, the programme of the Impact Festival 2021 includes exciting pitch sessions, lectures, matchmaking and workshops. Registrations are now open.
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04.11.2020
German Reading Prize 2020 awarded
The actress Annette Frier will be honoured with the German Reading Prize for her commitment to promoting reading. She is thus one of 16 individuals and institutions to receive this award from the Commerzbank Foundation and Stiftung Lesen in 2020. The German Reading Prize is awarded in six categories and is endowed with a total of 25,000 euros. One of these is the Commerzbank Foundation's special prize for prominent commitment. It comes with 2,500 euros for a good cause. Annette Frier intends to donate half of the prize money to the library of the Baltasar children's hospice in Olpe, the other half to the reading room of a children's hospital in Cologne.

30.10.2020
Apply now for the Commerzbank Environmental Internship 2021
For more than 30 years, Commerzbank has enabled students to spend several months on an internship in a German protected area. This will also be the case next year: up to 75 students can complete an open-air semester in one of the 27 participating national parks, nature parks and biosphere reserves in 2021. The Commerzbank environmental internship offers students the chance to combine their passion for nature and the environment with practical experience and in the process acquire important skills for their future career choice. The application deadline is 15.01.2021.
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29.10.2020
KlimaVest: Impact fund for private investors
Commerz Real has launched its first impact fund for private investors. Initially distributed exclusively by Commerzbank, klimaVest invests in tangible assets that make a demonstrable contribution to reducing CO2 emissions: renewable energy production facilities as well as sustainable infrastructure, mobility and forestry. Investors can invest from 10,000 euros and receive regular reporting not only on performance but also on the climate impact achieved by the assets in the fund.
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30.09.2020
Commerzbank Foundation awards prize for cultural education
ZukunftsGut, Germany's most valuable prize for institutional cultural education with a total of 80,000 euros, was awarded for the second time on 30th of September 2020. For the first time, the Commerzbank Foundation is awarding prizes to four institutions: First place was shared by the Landesbühnen Sachsen and the Kulturforum Witten. The Kunsthaus Dresden and the Traumschüff Potsdam jointly took second place. All four institutions convinced the jury with their strategically oriented cultural education activities. In doing so, they proved their innovative skills and demonstrated with creative design ability how cultural education can succeed not only in cities but also in rural areas.

28.09.2020
Sustainable Finance Summit 2020
The first virtual European Sustainable Finance Summit calls on the financial industry and the real economy to work together to achieve the Paris climate goal. Rüdiger Senft, Head of Sustainability at Commerzbank, explains in the online magazine "Commerzbanker" how the bank supports its customers in the transition to low-carbon business models and how we will measure and manage climate risks in our loan portfolio in the future.

24.09.2020
Transparency on climate impact in the credit portfolio
Commerzbank now supports the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosure (TCFD) and has simultaneously joined the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi). The TCFD recommendations form the framework for future reporting on dealing with climate change. In addition, as an SBTi member, the Bank is committed to a science-based reduction of CO2 in its loan portfolio. In this way, we want to make the risks and opportunities of climate change for our credit portfolio transparent and manage them in the future using science-based targets.
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16.09.2020
Second own Green Bond 8 times subscribed
Commerzbank today very successfully issued another Green Bond with an issue volume of EUR 500 million. The Bank is using the proceeds to finance projects in the field of renewable energies. The non-preferred senior bond met with exceptionally strong investor interest. The final order book had a volume of more than 4 billion euros and was thus 8 times subscribed. The sustainability rating agency Sustainalytics confirmed in its second party opinion that the bond meets the requirements of the current Green Bond Principles. Commerzbank has assigned loans for onshore and offshore wind projects and solar projects in Germany, other European countries and North America to the bond. The projects financed by the Green Bond lead to CO2 savings of around 850,000 tonnes per year.

04.09.2020
Asset management in accordance with the Principles for Responsible Investments
Commerzbank's Asset Management has signed the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI), an investor initiative in partnership with the United Nations for responsible investment. Its principles reflect the increasing importance of environmental and social aspects as well as sustainable corporate governance for investment decisions.
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11.09.2020
New issue of the investment magazine nachhaltig+
In the current issue of our online magazine nachhaltig+, the chief investment strategist from the private customer segment explains the return and risk of sustainable investments, how a fund company can influence the sustainability of companies and what sustainability news Commerzbank itself has to offer. The magazine in film format is published every three months.
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08.09.2020
"Leopoldina Early Career Award 2020" for biodiversity researcher
Dr. Patrick Weigelt, young scientist at the University of Göttingen, receives the "Leopoldina Early Career Award 2020". The prize is endowed with 30,000 euros, provided by the Commerzbank Foundation. The National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina is honouring Weigelt for the development of biodiversity databases and for his research on plant biodiversity. His research areas include the influence of humans on the spread of plant species outside their areas of origin, for example through man-made climate change. The "Leopoldina Early Career Award of the Commerzbank Foundation" has been awarded every two years since 2010. It honours scientists in the first ten years after their doctorate for outstanding achievements in a field represented in the Leopoldina.
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04.09.2020
Nasdaq Sustainable Bond Network
Commerzbank is the first green bond issuer from Germany to join the Nasdaq Sustainable Bond Network (NSBN). NSBN publishes all data, qualitative information and documents submitted by issuers on a publicly accessible website. The aim of the network is to bring transparency to the global sustainable bond market and to support both product issuers and investors in advancing green initiatives.

17.08.2020
Anniversary year 2020: 50 years of the Commerzbank Foundation
The Commerzbank Foundation is celebrating its 50th anniversary - a reason to celebrate despite Corona. Since its launch in 1970 with an endowment capital of 5 million deutschmarks, it has built up
many sustainable partnerships in the fields of culture, social affairs and science and has established itself as a firm supporter in Germany. Today, the independent corporate foundation has an endowment volume of over 60 million euros. Its defined goal is to make a valuable contribution to the future viability of society. Over the past 50 years, the Commerzbank Foundation has supported over 1,000 projects to this end. The sponsoring partnerships range from non-profit associations to scientific institutions and cultural institutions. In the next 50 years, it will continue to be of great relevance to work for a sustainable society and to support appropriate projects. This is what the Foundation will be working on.
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14.08.2020
Advantage for Commerzbank customers: Tesla Powerwall as electricity storage
The trend towards private electricity generation continues unabated. Solar panels in combination with an electricity storage system can supply a household not only during the day, but also at night or in the event of a power cut, independently of the public electricity grid. Commerzbank customers and employees of the bank receive a EUR 500 discount for the installation of a Tesla Powerwall. In this way, Commerzbank, together with its customers, is making a further contribution to the energy transition and a lower CO2 future.
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31.07.2020
Training as a sustainable investment in the future
At Commerzbank, 425 trainees and dual students will have their first day of work on 3 August 2020. This is around 15 percent more than in the previous year. In IT alone, 100 junior staff will start. This means that the current training year also reflects the digital transformation of the banking industry. Commerzbank offers a total of eight different vocational training programmes and dual courses of study. In all areas, we train exclusively according to demand. This year, we were once again able to take on all junior staff who requested this.
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16.07.2020
CO2 emissions of the Annual General Meeting offset
Commerzbank has offset the greenhouse gas emissions of 3.3 tonnes caused by its Annual General Meeting 2020 with CO2 certificates from climate protection projects. The AGM was held as a virtual event due to the Corona pandemic. This led to a significant reduction in emissions. The face-to-face event of the AGM in the previous year had still caused 152 tonnes of greenhouse gases.
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14.07.2020
New targets for more climate protection
After Commerzbank's current climate target of 70% CO2 savings in Germany compared to 2007 was achieved ahead of schedule, the bank has now adopted a new climate target: An additional 15% CO2 emissions are to be reduced by 2025 (base year 2018). This corresponds to CO2 savings of 2,600 tonnes per year. The new climate target includes international Commerzbank locations in around 20 countries for the first time. Unavoidable emissions will continue to be offset by the purchase of CO2 certificates so that banking operations remain climate neutral. In addition, two new energy targets have been set. For example, it is planned to reduce total energy consumption by an average of 2% per year by 2025 compared to 2018. In addition, electricity consumption per full-time employee is to be kept constant until 2025 compared to the base year 2018 - despite increasing digitalisation.
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09.07.2020
Market research with social added value
Commerzbank has been supporting the Joblinge e.V.
initiative for many years with
its education mentoring programme. The aim is to offer young people with difficult starting conditions a perspective for the future and to integrate them into the labour market. We have now also supported the association in its work by developing and building a new internet platform with our in-house User Experience Studio: The prototype was examined for perception, comprehensibility and usability and potential improvements were identified.

02.07.2020
Sustainable building management for Commerz Real real estate
Commerz Real will successively increase the environmental compatibility of its real estate in cooperation with Frankfurt-based Mainova. Initially, this will involve buildings of the open-ended real estate fund Hausinvest. In future, their tenants will benefit from a green electricity tariff model developed especially for them. In addition, Mainova is equipping the Hausinvest properties with intelligent metering systems for electricity in order to better exploit energy-saving potential. According to the Scope rating agency, CO2 emissions at Hausinvest are already well below the industry average. The cooperation agreement also provides for the installation of smart metering systems for gas and water as soon as the technical devices are available.
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30.06.2020
GRI Report 2019 published
Commerzbank presents its Sustainability Report 2019 in accordance with the requirements of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI Report 2019). With this annual overview, we explain in detail the facts and figures of our sustainability performance. This year, for the first time, we are also reporting on the new GRI Standard 207: Tax. The GRI Report is also our progress report on the status of implementation of the ten principles of the UN Global Compact.
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30.06.2020
Climate agreement of the German financial sector
Commerzbank today signed a climate protection commitment together with 15 other players in the German financial sector. In the agreement, Commerzbank commits to aligning its credit and investment portfolios with the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement.
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30.06.2020
New investment magazine nachhaltig+
In the first issue of our new online magazine nachhaltig+, the chief investment strategist from the Private Customers segment explains everything about responsible investing and how Commerzbank is committed to the mountain forest project. The film format will appear every three months in future.
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23.06.2020
Sustainability programme 2017 completed
Since 2017, Commerzbank has been working on the implementation of its 100-goal sustainability programme. This is now being concluded with a final status report. We are currently defining new goals as part of the group-wide strategy project "Sustainability 5.0", which will follow the programme.

16.06.2020
Ongoing support for the Bergwaldprojekt
Even after the successful end of the tree-planting campaign for the electronic mailbox at the end of 2019, in which 670,000 square metres of recreational and retreat areas for humans and animals were reforested, Commerzbank remains one of the main supporters of the Bergwaldprojekt e.V. The cooperation will continue in the future with various measures. In asset management, for example, it is now possible to provide customers with the previously printed reports mainly digitally. Thanks to the saved stationery, another 3,500 square metres of forest can be reforested.
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16.06.2020
Support for the campaign against child abuse
According to initial figures, the coronavirus has led to an increase in domestic and family violence. Commerzbank therefore supports the campaign "No Child Left Alone" of the independent Commissioner for Child Sexual Abuse, who acts on behalf of the Federal Government. As part of this campaign, information documents with contact options for affected children and attentive adults are available at Commerzbank branches.

27.05.2020
Top career opportunities for women at Commerzbank
Commerzbank has made it to the winner's podium when it comes to career advancement for women. According to a recent study commissioned by "Deutschland Test", Commerzbank offers top career opportunities for women. Companies from over 200 sectors were surveyed. Among the banks, Commerzbank once again achieved first place. We are committed to equal opportunities and gender diversity. Currently, the proportion of female managers in the Group is 32.5%. As part of our sustainability programme, we aim to increase this to 35% across all management levels by the end of 2021.
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07.05.2020
Spontaneous relief action in the Corona crisis
Commerzbank is making 15 cars from the bank's fleet, which are normally used for business trips, available to the Rhine-Main Regional Association of Johanniter-Unfall-Hilfe free of charge until the end of June. Refuelling is also free of charge for Johanniter. This is because the Johanniter in Frankfurt and neighbouring districts have to make many additional journeys during the Corona crisis - for example, to help those in need with their shopping or to supply employees with face masks and disinfectants.

19.04.2020
Support for parents in the home office
"Childcare in home office is like brushing your teeth with Nutella."
This description sums up the current situation of many Commerzbankers quite well. To remedy the situation, the bank's Diversity Management, together with pme Familienservice, offers online childcare for employees' children. For two to three hours a day, children of similar ages are kept happy (and their parents along with them) with shared reading, handicrafts, singing or exercise games. In addition, the diversity colleagues recommend numerous online formats for learning, creativity and movement at home. The positive reactions on the intranet show how well the offers are received by both generations.

06.04.2020
Statement of the UPJ Network for Solidarity, Public Spirit and Cohesion
Taking responsibility and showing commitment: This is even more important during the Corona pandemic than before. With a statement published today, the members in the UPJ Network for Corporate Citizenship and CSR - including Commerzbank - declare their commitment to society. Under the motto #WeStayCommitted, the website lists numerous examples of how the companies are providing concrete help during the crisis.
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06.04.2020
Commerz Real wind and solar funds triple electricity production
Commerz Real's solar and wind funds recorded electricity production of 2,512 gigawatt hours (GWh) in 2019. This is around 3.5 times as much as in the previous year (704 GWh) and corresponds to the average annual consumption of around 807,000 German private households. In addition, the solar and wind parks achieved emission savings of around 1.2 million tonnes of carbon dioxide. Commerz Real has been investing in solar energy under the CFB brand since 2005 and has also been investing in wind farms and other energy infrastructure segments for institutional investors since 2016. Currently, the asset manager for real estate investments of Commerzbank Group manages 50 solar power plants and thirteen onshore and offshore wind farms.
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02.04.2020
Apply now for the German Reading Prize 2020
The application phase for the German Reading Prize 2020 starts now. The award is a joint initiative of Stiftung Lesen and the Commerzbank Foundation and is under the patronage of Prof. Monika Grütters, Minister of State for Culture and Media. Projects can be submitted until 30 June.

02.04.2020
Liquidity helps through the Corona crisis
With the new online platform CommerzbankHilft.de, the bank helps companies to secure liquidity despite closed businesses. The idea is simple: companies offer vouchers for their services and products on the platform. By buying these vouchers, customers support their local businesses. These can continue to generate sales and thus receive important liquidity. The vouchers are redeemed at a later date.

30.03.2020
Lights out - environmental awareness on
Commerzbank once again took part in the worldwide Earth Hour and switched off the lights for one hour at 8.30 p.m. on 28 March at selected locations in Frankfurt and Berlin. The joint campaign also motivates people to live and act in a more environmentally friendly way far beyond the 60 minutes. Commerzbank is pursuing this goal with its own climate strategy.
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20.03.2020
Non-financial report 2019
The entrepreneurial success of the Commerzbank Group is also influenced by a large number of non-financial factors. We have published these today in a summarised separate non-financial report in accordance with the CSR Directive Implementation Act in the 2019 Annual Report. The 2019 non-financial report has been subject to a business review by the auditing firm Ernst & Young.
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06.03.2020
Commerzbank represented in the new DAX 50 ESG Index
In March 2020, Deutsche Börse Group launched the DAX 50 ESG. Commerzbank has been represented among the top 50 companies from the very beginning. In addition to market capitalisation and stock market value, the index composition also takes into account companies' ESG performance.
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04.02.2020
Commerzbank in the upper midfield of the WWF bank rating
WWF Germany has published its first "Rating for the integration of sustainability in core business areas". The rating assessed the extent to which Germany's 14 largest banks meet the WWF's requirements for a "sustainable bank 2025". Commerzbank is in the upper midfield in both private and corporate banking. The WWF considers Commerzbank's corporate governance in terms of sustainability to be up to date, particularly due to the anchoring of the topic in the Commerzbank 5.0 strategy and the signing of the Principles for Responsible Banking. At the same time, however, the rating also highlights challenges in the areas of Savings & Investments and Financing & Mortgages.
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25.02.2020
Declaration on the German Sustainability Code
Commerzbank has published a declaration of compliance with the German Sustainability Code (DNK) for the reporting year 2018. The Sustainability Code describes in twenty criteria and supplementary performance indicators what constitutes the core of corporate sustainability and makes the sustainability performance of participating companies comparable. For the first time, the current GSC statement also includes reporting on the National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights.
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24.02.2020
Restcent donation awarded for the third time
For the third time, the collected donations of committed colleagues could be awarded to selected support projects in January 2020. "Every cent counts" is the motto of the remainder cent donation. In 2019, 5,017 employees of Commerzbank and Commerz Real participated by donating the cents of their monthly salary to social projects. The bottom line was an impressive 29,569.24 euros in donations for three projects. Promoting inclusive businesses Commerzbank has concluded a framework agreement with the cooperatives of workshops (GDW Mitte) to standardise the ordering of products and services from workshops for people with disabilities throughout Germany and thus promote inclusive businesses. This is one of the numerous measures and projects with which the Bank is implementing its "Action Plan Inclusion" until 2023. The action plan, based on the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, aims to break down mental barriers and create organisational conditions for successful cooperation between disabled and non-disabled people.

04.02.2020
CDP award for consideration of climate risks in the supply chain
Commerzbank has been recognised by the international non-profit organisation CDP for its management of climate risks in the supply chain. This places it among the top 3% of companies assessed. The assessment is based on selected criteria from the 2019 CDP questionnaire, including Scope 3 emissions and cooperation with suppliers, as well as the bank's overall CDP climate change score. In particular, Commerzbank sets an example for the environmental sustainability of purchased products and services with the standard for sustainable procurement and the supplier self-disclosure form.
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22.01.2020
Commerzbank becomes a partner of the Climate Bonds Initiative
Commerzbank has been a partner of the Climate Bonds Initiative since January 2020. It is thus taking a further step in its commitment to greater sustainability in the banking business. The non-profit international initiative, in which more than 100 partners from the financial services sector worldwide participate, has set itself the goal of using the global bond market to contribute to a CO2-efficient and climate-resistant economy.
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21.01.2020
Commerzbank in the Corporate Knights Global 100 Index
Commerzbank is listed in Corporate Knights' "Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World Index" (G100) for the second time this year and ranks 59th in the 2020 ranking, an improvement of 8 places compared to the previous year. Commerzbank is one of five German companies in the index.
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ZukunftsGut 2020: Apply by the end of March
ZukunftsGut, the Commerzbank Foundation's prize for institutional cultural mediation, is aimed at public and private cultural institutions in Germany that have recognised and fulfil mediation as a central joint task for their institution. The prize for cultural mediation in Germany, which comes with the highest endowment of 80,000 euros, honours forward-looking strategies and their sustainable anchoring. It aims to contribute to strengthening the status of cultural education as a core function in institutions and to support transformation processes. The application phase for 2020 runs until 31.03.202.

20.01.2020
CDP Climate Change 2019 Score of B for Commerzbank
Commerzbank has received a CDP Climate Change 2019 Score of B. This means it performs better than the average company in the financial sector. On behalf of investors, the international non-profit organisation CDP annually asks companies to report on their climate risks and opportunities. These are assessed by CDP and given a score of A-F. In total, more than 8,400 companies worldwide entered their climate data into the database in 2019.
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07.01.2020
Expanded bike-sharing offer for Commerzbank employees
Commerzbank is building on its successful climate strategy and expanding its range of rental bikes: since January 2020, Call a Bike bikes have been available to all Commerzbank employees. Instead of the previous 70 Commerzbank company bikes in Frankfurt, Commerzbank employees can now use the more than 15,000 Call a Bike bikes throughout Germany. The bikes add another environmentally friendly option to the existing mobility options.
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News from 2024

06/13/2024
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Commerzbank again has top ESG offering according to Capital study

06/04/2024
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Commerzbank acquires majority stake in Aquila Capital Investmentgesellschaft

05/22/2024
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International Day for Biological Diversity

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Recognition of our commitment from 2023

06.06.2023
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Commerzbank wins two awards for sustainability projects

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Corporate Knights Global 100

Sustainable Operations
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Award for environmental protection in office organisation

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Our award-winning activities in recent years

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News from 2024

06/13/2024 , Commerzbank again has top ESG offering according to Capital study

06/04/2024, Commerzbank acquires majority stake in Aquila Capital Investmentgesellschaft

05/22/2024, International Day for Biological Diversity

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