Through a transparent and continuous dialogue with its stakeholders, BNP Paribas is able to anticipate their expectations and track changes in society. This interactive process is central to our strategic priorities.
BNP Paribas pays close attention to all players in its ecosystem. They are segmented into two categories. The first includes contractual stakeholders: clients, employees and employee representative bodies, individual shareholders and institutional investors, as well as suppliers. The second group includes other strategic stakeholders, such as candidates (potential future employees), companies in which BNP Paribas invests, regulatory bodies and public authorities, financial and extra-financial rating agencies, networks and think tanks, civil society and its organisations (local communities, NGOs, consumer associations, charities, etc.), the media and opinion makers.
In line with our company purpose, we have chosen to regularly engage with all of our stakeholders through an open and constructive dialogue. A dedicated information approach, structured dialogue, and mechanisms for sharing information and monitoring relationships are all forms of this interaction. This listening and dialogue approach is key to anticipating changes in our businesses, improving the quality of our products and services, optimising risk management and designing innovative solutions that have a positive impact on society.
To inform the analysis of our stakeholders’ expectations, our materiality matrix, which was revised in 2021, maps and prioritises the challenges facing BNP Paribas. It is based on an assessment of the importance of 21 extra-financial issues and compares the perceptions of the Group’s employees(1) with those of its external stakeholders(2).
The materiality matrix has identified three categories of challenges, classified as crucial, major and important. The six crucial challenges for our Group are: data confidentiality and security; climate change and the energy transition; ethics and compliance; human rights; responsible investments and financing; business continuity.
The eight major challenges are: corporate economic value; customer expectations; digital transformation and innovation; employer policy; fair and inclusive workplace; governance; talent management; transparent practices. The six crucial and eight major challenges represent the 14 key priorities at the heart of our GTS 2025 strategic plan. Its three pillars - profitable growth (Growth), optimising the customer and employee experience (Technology), and scaling up sustainable finance (Sustainability) - are cross-cutting themes that unite these 14 priorities. As part of the transposition into French law of the European Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD)(3), we are working on a new update of our materiality matrix, which will be published in 2025.
