Doing business sustainably at LGT

Doing business sustainably is one of the bank’s fundamental corporate principals. We contribute to protecting the environment and the climate on many levels. In everything we do, we count on employees who identify with our values and who make a long-term commitment to our clients, our company, society and the environment.

Our commitment to doing business sustainably can be broken down into the three traditional sustainability segments: environment (E), social (S) and governance (G).

E for Environment – doing business sustainably for a healthy environment

LGT has been pursuing prudent environmental and operations management for many years and has already reached a number of important milestones. In our Sustainability Strategy 2025, we have defined further ambitious goals in the areas of mobility, facility management, procurement, digitalization, energy consumption and CO₂ emissions.

Facility management: From the planning and construction phase, inauguration and regular operation, through to maintenance and renovation, our building management is consistently geared towards sustainability. All new buildings are constructed in accordance with LEED or equivalent standards. One example is the complete renovation of our Zurich office, concluded in 2016, in line with the Minergie standard and the building’s resource-efficient maintenance.
Operational reviews and optimization: When it comes to environmental and climate protection, our focus is on increasing energy efficiency. The buildings in Geneva and Zurich, for instance, are cooled and heated exclusively with lake water. On the buildings in Liechtenstein and on some in Switzerland, we generate electricity and heat with photovoltaic and solar systems. In our Service Center in Liechtenstein, we produced more than 14 percent of the electricity we required and over 30 percent of the heating energy ourselves in 2018.
Reduction, substitution and compensation: By 2025, we aim to reduce our per person CO₂ emissions by 20 percent compared to 2017. We want to source only renewable heat and heating energy worldwide and reduce paper consumption group-wide by 30 percent per person compared with 2017. We offset unavoidable CO₂ emissions from business operations and business-related flights. To compensate for these, we have been supporting a wind power project in India since 2019, which is certified with the Gold Standard Label and managed and monitored by First Climate Markets AG.

Key environmental figures

		2019	2018	2017
Total energy consumption	MWh	17'784	17'337	20'104
> Electricity	MWh	11'652	12'269	14'143
> Heating/Cooling	MWh	6'133	5'068	5'961
Paper consumption	Tonnes	243	265	358
> Proportion of 100% recycled paper	%	43.9	39.9	42.7
Waste	Tonnes	391	397	390
Air kilometre	km	31'536'763	31'248'270	25'671'351
Drinking water	m³	33'041	30'771	33'417
CO₂ emissions	Tonnes	7'992	7'651	6'482

Reinvesting the CO₂ tax refund: We have been donating the refunds LGT receives from the CO₂ tax to the Swiss Climate Foundation since 2012. The Climate Foundation supports small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Switzerland and Liechtenstein with energy efficiency measures and innovation projects that contribute to protecting the climate.
Mobility: In order to reduce commuter and business traffic, LGT encourages the use of public transport. Bicycles are available to employees at various locations, and clients and employees can recharge the batteries of their electric vehicles at in-house charging stations. In addition, some of our employees in Switzerland and Liechtenstein take part in the nationwide “Bike-to-work” campaigns, which aim to raise public awareness for car-free mobility.
Sustainable procurement: In our procurement process, we attach great importance to ensuring that products comply with our sustainability principles from production through to disposal. We require our suppliers to adhere to the LGT Supplier Code of Conduct, which is based on the LGT Code of Conduct as well as internationally recognized principles such as the UN Global Compact. This includes ensuring that our suppliers’ sub-contractors also comply with these principles, which cover areas such as labor standards, human rights, environmental issues and the fight against corruption.

LGT Code of Conduct for Suppliers (PDF)

LGT Code of Conduct (PDF)

S for Social – commitment to society and employees

The LGT Employee Volunteering Program — More information

Satisfied and healthy employees are the most important asset of any company. We strive to offer our employees fair and attractive working conditions and a pleasant work environment. The fact that we succeed in this is evidenced, among other things, by the Top Employer Award that LGT Bank Switzerland and LGT Bank Liechtenstein have received several times.
With our Sustainability Strategy 2025, we have set ourselves further goals for employee development and promotion.

Our health management program LGT Vitality is designed to strengthen the long-term performance and health of our employees.
LGT has a strict value system and adheres to ethical and professional standards that are set out in the LGT Code of Conduct. It treats its employees with respect and is open to and appreciates different opinions, perspectives and cultural practices. In 2018, people from over 57 nations worked at LGT.
With the Employee Volunteering Program (EVP), we provide our employees with volunteering opportunities that support less privileged people or help protect the environment. Over the last five years, around five percent of all employees have participated in various EVP initiatives. For example, we support the Tech for Austria education initiative in Austria, collect donations for The Prince’s Trust in the UK and organize a soup market in London, the proceeds of which go to an organization that supports the homeless. LGT employees in Hong Kong, Singapore and New York are also involved in various programs and initiatives that benefit society.
Since 2014, LGT has acknowledged the work of charitable organizations in Liechtenstein with the LGT Award for Social Commitment. The prize, which is endowed with CHF 50'000, is awarded every two years to social organizations in Liechtenstein.
In 2020, LGT recognized three organizations: the Liechtensteiner Behinderten-Verband (Liechtenstein Association for the Disabled), which advocates for the needs of people with disabilities, as well as the Namaskar INDIA aid organization and the “Together – Hilfe für Indien” association, which work in the areas of nutrition, education and health in various parts of India. The LGT Award for Social Commitment is endowed with 60 000 Swiss francs and was presented to the three organizations in equal shares of 20 000 Swiss francs each.
LGT has been a partner of the non-profit organization Drink & Donate since 2016. Under the motto “Drink tap water, support water projects”, we encourage employees to avoid bottled mineral water and to drink tap water. We also donate CHF 100'000 per year to Drink & Donate drinking water projects selected by employees.

Drink & Donate

G for Governance – Good corporate governance for trust and stability

The LGT Code of Conduct - our common value system — More information

Responsible and effective corporate governance is very important to LGT and essential for gaining and strengthening the trust of clients, employees, the company’s owner and other stakeholders.

The LGT Code of Conduct – Our shared system of values

Our business policy is based on performance, professionalism and fairness as well as high ethical standards. Our LGT Code of Conduct sets out a minimum standard that we must meet even in cases where national legislation is less strict. The LGT Code of Conduct sets out binding ethical and professional standards for all employees as well as the Foundation Board and Board of Directors.

André Lagger, CEO LGT Financial Services

“Our facility management has been underpinned by sustainable criteria for many years. Since 2010, LGT has been CO₂-neutral and in the years to come, we will continuously strive to further reduce our environmental footprint.”

André Lagger, CEO LGT Financial Services