Press room

Halyk Bank became the first and the only bank in Kazakhstan to join the (UN Global Compact).

The UN Global Compact is the largest voluntary initiative in the area of corporate social responsibility and sustainable development in the world operating since 1999. As of today, the UN Global Compact unites over 20,000 member companies from more than 160 countries of the world.

It should be noted that the UN Global Compact helps companies do business responsibly by aligning their strategies and operations with 10 core principles*, including human rights, labor, environment, and others.

At the same time, it is worth noting that Halyk is particularly focused on developing and improving sustainability practices (ESG) and makes significant progress in terms of human capital management, improving the environment through green finance, introducing gender equality and inclusiveness, and protecting personal data.

"As a banking institution, we understand the importance of corporate social responsibility. Our accession to the UN Global Compact implies our commitment to the 10 principles and our willingness to support the UN objectives and initiatives in the area of sustainable development. Halyk Bank intends to further improve and promote global practices of responsible business conduct, and undertakes to follow the principles of this initiative aimed at protecting human rights, responsible labor relations, environmental protection, and many other aspects," Umut Shayakhmetova, CEO of Halyk Bank, commented.

It is important to mention that the primary advantage of the UN Global Compact is that a joining company declares its commitment to the global Sustainable Development Goals. Thus, it becomes part of the cohort of a new type of companies that operate to not only improve their financial performance but also widely use the principles of sustainable development, which will increase the company's value and improve its financial results in the long run.

Normally, it takes quite a long time for a company to be included in the UN Global Compact, given all the approved procedural regulations. Halyk Bank has also successfully passed the Due Diligence and compliance control. In particular, Halyk's operations, policies and position were reviewed against 10 key compact principles. As a result, the largest bank in the country has been approved to join the UN Global Compact in the shortest possible time.

"It is worth highlighting that not all companies are invited to join the UN Global Compact. Some organizations have to wait for six months to be approved for membership, while others fail to pass the review and are rejected. But Halyk Bank was approved for the Global Compact membership in record time, not only in the country context but also in comparison to many other international companies. This is largely due to all the initiatives on environmental, gender, institutional, and other Sustainability Goals that have been volunteered by Halyk Bank in recent times. In my opinion, it is evidence that the Halyk Bank is truly committed to taking the lead in implementing these goals and the UN Global Compact principles, not only locally, but also regionally and internationally. The UN Global Compact membership opens a new level of opportunities for Halyk Bank in terms of improving its business climate and profitability. I strongly believe that we will continue to implement them together," emphasized Dinara Seijaparova, UN Global Compact Country Manager for Kazakhstan.

It should be noted that the participants of the UN Global Compact are industrial, healthcare companies, construction, insurance, and financial services companies, banks, and others.

* 10 Principles of the UN Global Compact:

Human Rights

Principle 1: Businesses should support and respect the protection of internationally proclaimed human rights; and

Principle 2:  make sure that they are not complicit in human rights abuses.

Labor

Principle 3: Businesses should uphold the freedom of association and the effective recognition of the right to collective bargaining;

Principle 4: the elimination of all forms of forced and compulsory labor;

Principle 5: the effective abolition of child labor; and

Principle 6: the elimination of discrimination in respect of employment and occupation.

Environment

Principle 7: Businesses should support a precautionary approach to environmental challenges;

Principle 8: undertake initiatives to promote greater environmental responsibility;

Principle 9: encourage the development and diffusion of environmentally friendly technologies.

Anti-Corruption

Principle 10: Businesses should work against corruption in all its forms, including extortion and bribery.

Link to Halyk Bank's profile as a member of the UN Global Compact