Driven by social impact

• serving the public sector
• building client partnerships

Our history

The history of BNG Bank started in the early 20th century, in a period where many social issues like poverty dominated the public debate. It was during this period that the Association of Dutch Municipalities (VNG) was set up, which in turn led to the establishment of the Gemeentelijke Credietbank (municipal bank) in 1914. This bank provided municipalities with financial support, thereby helping them to address the social challenges of that time. Today, the Gemeentelijke Credietbank is called BNG Bank and our purpose remains the same. 

We make a unique contribution to the Netherlands. The Dutch public sector is in our DNA: we are the bank of and for the public sector and we are driven by social impact.

We want to strengthen this unique position. That is where Our “Road to Impact” strategy comes in, defining our direction using a clear purpose and strategic priorities. 

Our purpose

Everything we do revolves around making social impact. Instead of maximising profits, our priority is to maximise the social impact of our activities.

BNG Bank – Driven by social impact

We aim to be a natural partner for our clients by helping them addressing the social challenges they have to cope with. We want to be successful at delivering and demonstrating our social impact.

To achieve this ambition, we focus on the Dutch public sector and on building strong customer partnerships. We do this based on our own identity, which is manifested in our three core values:

Core values

Sustainability indicates that our actions are focused on making an impact, both now and in the long term. We know what is happening in society, and we are focused on solutions and on the relationship with our clients.

Reliability is manifested in transparency in our actions and in our communications. We are clear and honest about what we can do and we deliver our commitments.

Professionalism defines how we work, how we develop and how we engage in a professional context: we work effectively and improve on an ongoing basis. We show respect for others, listen carefully and address issues using our experience.

Focus on the public sector

We deliberately focus on the public sector in the Netherlands; This is what makes us unique and is where our heritage is rooted. We use our knowledge and expertise in a targeted way. This enables us to increase our social impact.

We will measure and report on our impact, so we can work on continuously improving our social impact. For this, we will use the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). We mainly target four SDGs on which we can maximise our impact by helping our clients:

	Sustainable cities and communities (SDG 11) As a partner of social housing associations, BNG Bank contributes to better and liveable communities; As a partner of municipalities, BNG Bank contributes to affordable and better social provisions
	Good health and well-being (SDG 3) BNG Bank contributes to affordable health care for everyone; BNG Bank is a partner in improving sustainability of hospitals and other health care facilities
	Quality education (SDG 4) BNG Bank contributes to affordable and high quality school buildings BNG Bank is a partner in improving sustainability of schools and other educational buildings
	Affordable and clean energy (SDG 7) BNG Bank contributes to a larger share of renewable energy in our energy mix BNG Bank contributes to energy savings and more energy efficiency
	Climate action (SDG 13) BNG Bank contributes to the reduction greenhouse gases

Building client partnerships

We will focus on building client partnerships. We aim to be more to our clients than simply a provider of loans at favourable terms. We want to be a natural partner, based on expertise and honesty. A partner that actively contributes to the resolution of social challenges our clients have to cope with. 

That is why we invest in our knowledge of clients and markets. We actively engage with our clients to discuss their current and future needs, so that we can adjust our services accordingly. We help clients by providing them with the right products, through the right channels and at the right moment.

Funding

BNG Bank is one of the largest issuers in the Netherlands. BNG Bank's funding policy is designed to maintain its competitive funding position. BNG Bank responds to the needs of investors.

Financial ratings: Aaa / AAA / AAA

The long-term notes issued under BNG Bank are rated Aaa by Moody’s, AAA by Standard & Poor’s and AAA by Fitch.

All three long-term credit ratings have a stable outlook.

Ownership and structure

BNG Bank is a statutory two-tier company under Dutch law (structuurvennootschap).

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Summary

In recent years, we have provided a wide range of products and services to our clients, which has resulted in too much fragmentation of our activities. Through Our ”Road to Impact” strategy, we are redefining our focus, by defining:

• our purpose – maximum social impact;
• who we serve – we serve the public sector;
• how we act – in a sustainable, reliable and professional way.

In the period up to 2023, we will strengthen our client relationships by increasing our focus, by building better clients partnerships and by optimising our internal processes. 

We are convinced that these conscious choices will enable us to achieve our ambitions: to be the promotional lender that delivers social impact and that is considered by our clients and other stakeholders as their natural partner for addressing the social challenges they have to cope with.