COMPANY PROFILE / NO MORE BUSINESS AS USUAL / ESTABLISHING GOOD CR GOVERNANCE / ABOUT THIS REPORT / 2009 ACHIEVEMENTS / RESPONSIBLE BANKING

IN A CHANGING ENVIRONMENT / BUSINESS / EMPLOYEES / ENVIRONMENT / SOCIETY

CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009

READ ABOUT OUR VISION AND VALUES AT WWW.DANSKEBANK.COM/ABOUT

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Company prole No more business as usual Establishing good CR governance About this report 2009 achievements Responsible banking in a changing environment Business An important conversation Meeting the 2009 objectives Investing responsibly Responsible sourcing Business objectives 2010 Employees Supporting our employees in challenging times

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Meeting the 2009 objectives Employee objectives 2010 Employee data Environment The climate challenge continues Meeting the 2009 objectives Environmental objectives 2010 Environmental impact Society Financial skills for the next generation Meeting the 2009 objectives Society objectives 2010 Key Group facts Reporting principles

COMPANY PROFILE

CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009

Company prole
The Danske Bank Group serves more than 5 million retail customers as well as many corporate, public sector and institutional customers in 14 countries. The Group focuses on traditional banking based on the universal banking model, which includes serving customers through nationwide branch networks, online banking and telephone banking in all our markets. Some 2 million customers use the Banks online services. The Group has substantial activities in the nancial markets as well. Danske Markets conducts trading in equities, foreign exchange and xed income products; manages the Groups investment portfolio; and is responsible for corporate nance and corporate and institutional banking. The Group also includes Danske Capital, our asset management unit, and Danica Pension, Denmarks largest provider of pensions, life insurance and health care insurance to both personal and corporate customers. The Groups 22,000 well-qualied staff members provide reliable service tailored to the individual needs of our customers. Our mission is to become the best local nancial partner. To reach this goal, we build customer relationships and nancial partnerships on our core values and a thorough knowledge of our customers circumstances, requirements and desires. This report on Corporate Responsibility and the Groups CR policy are also based on Group core values such as integrity and accessibility. Read the CR policy on our Web site at danskebank.com/responsibility.

CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009 COMPANY PROFILE

No more business as usual

The year 2009 was unusual and challenging for the nancial sector, for the Danske Bank Group and for many of our customers. In all our markets, customers found themselves affected by declining property values and loss of income, businesses experienced lower growth, and banks faced increasingly difcult conditions and unexpected losses. Like many other banks, the Danske Bank Group was seriously affected by the challenging economic environment as well as a range of isolated cases. It is fair to say that managing nancial matters is no longer business as usual. At the Danske Bank Group, we take responsibility by helping to stabilise the economies we are part of while managing the social and environmental impact of our business. In these difcult times, we are dedicated to working closely with our customers to help them adapt to the changing conditions. Supporting our corporate and retail customers is vital to society as well as to our business. Therefore, in 2009, we undertook measures to meet the challenges and become an even better bank for our customers.

Looking after our employees

During the crisis, the nancial sector came under heavy public scrutiny, and condence in banks weakened. Exposed to stressful experiences with customers and confronted with criticism of their profession and workplace, some of our employees were also under a great deal of pressure last year. Nevertheless, our staff faced up to the challenges and stayed focused on helping our customers and adapting to new, more complex demands and a changed working environment.

NO MORE BUSINESS AS USUAL CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009

At the Danske Bank Group, we take responsibility by helping to stabilise the economies we are part of while managing the social and environmental impact of our business.
PETER STRAARUP / CHAIRMAN OF THE EXECUTIVE BOARD

We made cost reductions in all parts of the Group in order to match the changed business environment and the decrease in activity, and they included staff reductions. We worked together with trade unions to mitigate the number of layoffs and carefully planned the retirement process for those we had to let go. At the group level, we stayed focused on ensuring good, exible working conditions for all our employees. I am very pleased that our employees general satisfaction and motivation did not diminish in 2009 despite the hard times. In fact, the rating of senior managements ability to make the right decisions and inform employees rose from an already high level.

grate CR in our core business. Since the nancial environment is still extremely challenging, however, we must prioritise our CR efforts even more than before. In times of crisis, we must be able to measure the effect of our activities. Prioritising can be hard, but it is also healthy for the business. Actually, many of our environmental activities have an almost immediate cost-saving benet as well as a positive effect on the environment. Although the nancial crisis dominated our concerns in 2009, we still created positive results in the CR area. The crisis clearly demonstrated the importance of investing in the nancial education of the next generation of consumers. At the Danske Bank Group, we know that consumers with good nancial skills not only handle their own nances better. They also help to increase competition, innovation and prod-

uct quality in the nancial markets by challenging us to develop better products and solutions. For these reasons, in 2009 we strengthened our Financial Literacy and Investment in Education Programme by developing three new initiatives. In December 2009, we met an important goal by attaining carbon neutrality. The achievement coincided with the UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen (COP15) and sent a strong signal about our ongoing commitment to mitigating climate change.

Continuing commitment to CR
Exercising corporate responsibility remains pivotal in the Danske Bank Groups business model, and in 2009 we kept working to inte-

PETER STRAARUP, CHAIRMAN OF THE EXECUTIVE BOARD

CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009 NO MORE BUSINESS AS USUAL

Establishing good CR governance

READ ABOUT OUR POLICIES AND CODES AT WWW.DANSKEBANK.COM/RESPONSIBILITY At the Danske Bank Group, Corporate Responsibility is based on a set of general principles that guide our conduct as a business and an employer. These tenets include the UN Global Compacts ten principles on human rights, employee rights, the environment and anti-corruption. high standards of integrity, professionalism and ethics. Our policies and codes are operationalised in our CR strategy and implemented across all Group units. In 2009, we launched a new data management system that allows us to monitor the implementation of our strategies and follow up on our progress towards objectives even more effectively than before. Acting on behalf of the Board of Directors, the Groups Internal Audit department monitors the Groups compliance with the CR policies, business procedures and reporting standards. governance practices, the Danske Bank Group gives employees the opportunity to be whistleblowers. If an employee has any knowledge of irregularities, they must be reported. The Group wants to establish and maintain an environment that encourages the free ow of information. This also applies to the security of employees who report a suspicion and protection against retaliatory measures towards them. Reports and questions that are received through the whistleblower system are therefore treated condentially. The responsibility for managing whistleblowing in the Group lies with the managements of the Legal and Internal Audit departments.

Policies and strategies

A wide range of policies ensures that we live up to these principles. In the beginning of 2009, we revised the Groups CR policy to include our continuing support for the UN Global Compact and to emphasise our efforts to reduce our environmental impact and to support a low-carbon economy. In addition to the Group CR policy and our environmental policy, supplier standards, HR policies and code of conduct on corruption and bribery, we have a number of business procedures in place to ensure

Whistleblowing
All companies need to manage the risk of things going wrong. When something does go wrong, employees are usually the rst to notice. As part of its good corporate

CR management
In 2009, we strengthened the CR management framework. Overall responsibility for Group CR policy lies

ESTABLISHING GOOD CR GOVERNANCE CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009

CR governance structure
INTERNAL AUDIT BOARD OF DIRECTORS EXECUTIVE BOARD GROUP CR BOARD CR SECRETARIAT LOCAL EXECUTIVE SPONSOR LOCAL COORDINATORS SRI BOARD

with the highest CR governance body, the Group CR Board, which is headed by CFO Tonny Thierry Andersen, member of the Executive Board. All the Group CR Board members are also members of the Groups Executive Committee. This ensures that CR principles are rmly rooted in the executive management as well as in the Groups various country units. The Group CR Board meets twice a year to discuss corporate responsibility on a strategic level. Other governance bodies, such as the Socially Responsible Investment Board, are responsible for developing and implementing specic policies and programmes. In 2010, we will establish a Responsible Sourcing Board to oversee and make executive decisions on supplier issues.

head ofce in Copenhagen, the Group CR Secretariat, is responsible for the continuing development of the Groups CR strategy. The department also coordinates Group activities and manages the internal and external reporting on the Groups CR performance, including the Global Compact Communication on Progress. The Group CR Secretariat reports directly to the CFO. The CR Secretariat staff act as specialist consultants to other units and direct attention to CR issues that are not being addressed by the organisation. According to the CR strategy, CR issues should be managed by the relevant business unit or support area whenever possible. For example, supplier issues are handled mainly in purchasing and contract management departments, and employee issues are handled by HR and local management.

Local integration of CR
As an extension of the Group CR Board, each of the Danske Bank Groups seven major country units has appointed a local executive to supervise the implementation of Group CR policies and strategies at the unit. At the operational level, corporate responsibility matters at the country units are managed by local CR coordinators, who work closely with the Group CR Secretariat.

CR strategy development
A department located at the Group

CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009 ESTABLISHING GOOD CR GOVERNANCE

About this report

SEE OUR GRI INDEX AND CR FACT BOOK AT WWW.DANSKEBANK.COM/RESPONSIBILITY The aim of our annual CR report is to provide an overview of the nonnancial issues that are material to our business and to describe our CR strategies, activities and performance. The report covers all branded units in the Danske Bank Group and is intended primarily for investors, analysts and corporate customers with an interest in the Group at a strategic level. In cases where this report presents information that also appears in the Groups annual report, the information may be reported differently or in greater detail. For further information on the Groups nancial results and risk management, see Annual Report 2009 and Risk Management 2009. governments demand information on businesses positions on ethical, social and environmental issues. In 2008, the Danish Parliament adopted an amendment requiring the 1,100 largest Danish companies to account for their corporate responsibility policies, activities and results. The account must be included in the management review section of the annual report or appear in a separate report or on the companys Web site. If the business has joined the UN Global Compact or Principles for Responsible Investment, it may simply refer to the progress report that members of these associations are required to prepare. At the Danske Bank Group, we have supported the UN Global Compact since 2007. To full the statutory requirements, we therefore refer to our Global Compact Communication on Progress. The Groups COP can be found on the Global Compact Web site. It consists of this CR report as well as a PDF document presenting examples of policies, programmes, agreements and activities that promote the principles of the Global Compact.

Guidelines
Our CR reporting is organised in accordance with the GRI Sustainability Reporting Guidelines (G3). On our Web site, you can see a GRI index that corresponds to the relevant principles of the UN Global Compact. For our greenhouse gas emissions reporting, we also draw on guidance from the Greenhouse Gas Protocol and ISO 14064-1. For more information about the scope of this report, reporting principles and calculation of data, see page 35 of the report and the reporting principles on our Web site and in CR Fact Book 2009.

Statutory requirements
Public interest in corporate responsibility reporting has grown considerably in the past few years. Investors, analysts, customers and

ABOUT THIS REPORT CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009

2009 achievements
In 2009, the Groups work with corporate responsibility led to our inclusion in one of the worlds most widely recognised indexes of socially responsible companies, FTSE4Good. The index, which is managed by Financial Times and the London Stock Exchange (FTSE), contains companies with strong sustainability proles. The Groups inclusion in FTSE4Good sends an important signal to our investors that we work seriously on our environmental, social and ethical impact.

Reporting to Global Compact

In August 2009, we submitted the Groups rst Communication on Progress to Global Compact. In future, we will keep improving the COP to relate our activities and outcomes more clearly to the Groups overall performance.

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2009 Highlights

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CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009 ACHIEVEMENTS

Responsible banking in a changing environment

The recent nancial turbulence has seriously affected the global economy, and both businesses and consumers are struggling to overcome the challenges the crisis has brought. When companies struggle, unemployment grows. Then people may have difculty repaying their loans and risk losing their homes. This in turn reduces consumer demand and dampens the economy further. This vicious circle could have accelerated if no measures had been taken to stop the process and stabilise the economy. Like other businesses, the Danske Bank Group has experienced uncertainty about the future. The situation prompted us to take actions to safeguard our business and contribute to the stabilisation of the economies that we are part of. part in two state initiatives, the Act on Financial Stability (Bank Package I) and the Act on State-funded Capital Injections (Bank Package II). Bank Package I, from October 2008, is a kind of insurance policy with state guarantees for Danish banks. It ensures that lenders and depositors will be repaid if a bank encounters nancial difculties. The immediate effect of the package was an improvement in the banks ability to raise liquidity on the international capital markets, among other sources. The Group pays some DKr2.5bn a year to participate in the Bank Package I. We also cover around one third of all funds that are used to recapitalise banks that become insolvent, up to a maximum of DKr6.5bn. In total, the Groups contribution to Bank Package I in 2009 amounted to DKr4.1bn. Under Bank Package II, the Group received a capital infusion of DKr26bn in May 2009. This is a type of loan that can be included in the tier 1 ratio and that is just as valuable for banks as equity capital because it can be converted to equity. Danske Bank pays an interest rate of more than 9%, or about DKr2.5bn annually, to the Danish state. The loan strengthened the Groups capital base. Had we not received the capital infusion, we could have been forced to reduce the Groups balance sheet if the economic recession had suddenly escalated dramatically. By taking the loan, we have ensured that our creditworthy customers will continue to have access to capital.

Our economic footprint

The nancial crisis has demonstrated that a strong nancial infrastructure is important for society as a whole. Banks are essential to the

Contributing to nancial stability

In Denmark the Group chose to take

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RESPONSIBLE BANKING IN A CHANGING ENVIRONMENT CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009

Ensuring nancial stability is a shared responsibility. At the Danske Bank Group, we want to be part of the solution.
TONNY THIERRY ANDERSEN / CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER

economy because they facilitate access to capital, investment, payments and other transactions. With the two bank packages, the Danish state has underscored the importance of this role. Since 2007, we have addressed the broader aspects of our value creation in what we dene as our economic footprint. Our various interactions with stakeholders and the communities where we operate create mutual value. This value can take the form of the sound advice that we give our customers, the knowledge that our employees bring to work, or the skills we help build in our nancial literacy programme. In 2009, the Danske Bank Group had around 5 million customers and 734 branches in 14 countries. Access to capital is necessary if businesses are to grow and private individuals are to prosper. At Dan-

ske Bank, we recognise our responsibility to nance the projects of our personal and corporate customers. This does not mean we can say yes every time a customer approaches us. That would not be responsible. But we help to maintain a sound economy in our markets by continuing to lend in a responsible manner. In 2009, the percentage of loan applications from new and existing Danish customers that were approved remained stable at 92% for retail customers and 87% for corporate customers. In Denmark, the Group issued a total of DKr75bn in new loans in 2009. The Group employs more than 22,000 people. Most of them have a nancial education, but we are also one of the biggest employers of IT professionals in Denmark. We train our employees in order to equip them to meet the demands of technological developments and

increasing specialisation. In 2009, employees received DKr12,500bn in salaries (including pensions and social benets). In addition, the Groups investment in training and education benets employees and ensures their employability. In 2009, the Groups payments to suppliers amounted to DKr14,545bn and its corporation taxes, including VAT and social contributions for employees, amounted to DKr4.9bn. Governments also beneted indirectly from personal taxes of DKr3.5bn paid by Group employees. Because of our participation in the Danish state guarantee scheme, the Group may not pay dividends or repurchase shares for a period of two years starting in October 2008. Therefore, no dividends will be paid to shareholders from earnings in 2008 or 2009.

CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009 RESPONSIBLE BANKING IN A CHANGING ENVIRONMENT

11

Business

An important conversation
In 2008 and 2009, the nancial crisis had a profound effect on the nancial services sector, at both the business and reputational levels. In 2009, public surveys indicated that banking customers in Denmark were among the least satised in Europe (sources include the Epsis survey, with more than 50,000 interviews throughout Europe). Since Danske Bank is the largest retail bank in Denmark, we were also affected by the general lack of trust in banks. Retail customer satisfaction in Danske Bank Denmark dropped from 73 in 2008 to 67 in 2009 (see page 15). To investigate this situation further, we undertook various surveys of retail and corporate customers. The results revealed that the crisis has affected condence in the Bank considerably. Even though the respondents were condent that Danske Bank would get through the crisis, concerns about the Banks performance and specic one-off events weakened the Banks competitive position in comparison with its standing before the crisis. Web site, and 3,500 expressed their opinions in an open blog. We monitored the blog around the clock and arranged for relevant Danske Bank employees to respond promptly to more than 750 blog posts and give qualied and serious consideration to our stakeholders concerns. The posts ranged from personal experiences with the Bank to general views on the nancial crisis and the role of banks in society. Although many people expressed satisfaction with and condence in the Bank, many others were disappointed and highly critical. The majority of the posts fell under three headings: responsibility, dened as a broader nancial responsibility towards customers and society; transparency, dened as greater disclosure of prices, fees and product terms; and accessibility, dened as a respectful and forthcoming approach towards customers at all times.

A look in the mirror

The results of these studies depicted the Banks management as unwilling to inform the public sufciently about the nancial crisis and the Banks position. Customers generally desired greater attentiveness and sensitivity as well as more open and honest communications. We decided to act on this impression by turning the spotlight on ourselves and looking at the Bank through the eyes of our customers and the public. In June 2009, we asked the Danish people to give us their thoughts and views on the nancial situation, their own nances and their experiences with Danske Bank. More than 80,000 people visited a new dialogue section on our

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BUSINESS CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009

23 COMMITMENTS TO BECOME A BETTER BANK

01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 INCREASED ATTENTION TO YOUR INVESTMENT PROFILE REGULAR SURVEY OF CUSTOMER SATISFACTION NO BONUSES FOR ADVISERS KNOW YOUR INVESTMENT POLICY WE WILL HIRE A CUSTOMER SATISFACTION MANAGER INCREASED OPENNESS ABOUT COMPLAINTS DKR75M TO TRAIN ADVISERS TRAINING FOR SENIORS IN EBANKING WE SUPPORT VOLUNTEER DEBT ADVISORY SERVICES THE BEST ADVICE AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE GUIDE TO A GOOD ADVISORY MEETING YOU RECEIVE A SUMMARY OF YOUR MEETINGS FASTER RESPONSES TO E-MAIL AND TELEPHONE MESSAGES WE ANSWER THE PHONE WITHIN 30 SECONDS AROUND THE CLOCK WE ARE INTRODUCING A SERVICE HOST YOU CAN REACH THE BANK MORE QUICKLY DKR1BN TO INCREASE USER-FRIENDLINESS WE HAVE SET UP A SPECIAL UNIT FOR SMALL BUSINESSES BECOME PART OF OUR CUSTOMER PANEL WE GIVE YOUR FINANCES AN EXTRA REVIEW TRANSPARENT PRICES COMPARE PRICES WITH OTHER BANKS PRICES SEE HOW WE EARN MONEY

Now we go to work
The blog posts supplied us with invaluable knowledge about our stakeholders concerns and expectations as well as about their opinions of the Bank as a service provider. This knowledge, together with information from our customer satisfaction surveys, laid the foundation for the development of 23 concrete measures that we have initiated in order to become a better bank. We have gone to work to become more transparent, accessible and responsible in the eyes of our stakeholders. For example, we realised that some customers feel Danske Bank is inaccessible, reluctant to admit mistakes, and unable to recognise when we can do better or to learn from others. We wish to change that perception and own up to our actions, including the ones we could have performed better. One way to do this is by being more accessible

when a customer les a complaint. We therefore launched a new page on our Web site where customers can post ideas and le complaints, nd statistics on complaints, and see our answers to the most common problems that customers experience. Also, as they face a more complex nancial reality than before the crisis, many customers feel they do not have enough information about their nancial options. Our advisers will therefore become more proactive, contacting customers with concrete suggestions on how they can make the most of their nancial resources. In 2009, Danske Bank Denmark earmarked DKr75m to develop advisers competencies. An important element in this programme is providing relevant nancial services in a low-growth economy. This initiative is very much in line with the Groups Financial Literacy pro-

gramme, which focuses on enabling our future customers to make sound nancial decisions.

Becoming a better bank

Danske Bank Denmark has embarked on a journey. We do not wish to be a different bank, but we do want to become an even better bank. And we will keep involving our customers and stakeholders in the Banks development. To ensure a continuing dialogue, we have set up an online customer panel consisting of a large number of people who wish to share their opinions with us. A new strategy for social media will provide us with yet another tool for staying close to our stakeholders. The ongoing conversation with customers is very important. In the end, it will determine how successful our business is.

CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009 BUSINESS

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ACTIVITIES 2009
Launch online advisory programme for 18-27 year olds Co-found and launch Dansif, the Danish version of Eurosif Ongoing implementation of Moment of Truth method of surveying customer satisfaction

RESULT

Meeting the 2009 objectives

At the Danske Bank Group, we want to improve the way we explain nancial matters to young adults. We have therefore undertaken measures to learn more about 18-27 year olds preferred means of gaining nancial knowledge.

young adults think they know and what they actually do know about personal nance. Nevertheless, the majority of the age group acknowledged that they need to learn more about these matters. In response to this need, we developed Mind Your Money, an advisory Web site for young adults. The site is built upon situations that are particularly relevant to 18-27 year olds, such as travelling, entering university, starting a home or having children. On the site we have developed new ways of communicating personal nance to this age group by focusing on exploratory interaction with simple tips, visualisations, tools and calculators. Mind Your Money was developed in 2009 and will be launched in Denmark, Finland, Sweden and Norway in 2010.

Carbon trading scheme in place

In 2009, the Danske Bank Group began offering trading in carbon allowances, also known as EU allowances or EUAs. Each allowance is equivalent to one tonne of carbon dioxide. Carbon allowance trading promotes reliable market signals on the prices of fossil fuels and greenhouse gases. By trading in EUAs, the Group is supporting the development of a low-carbon economy.

Mind Your Money

In collaboration with YouGov Zapera, we conducted a survey in Denmark, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Northern Ireland and Ireland to understand the level of nancial literacy among this age group. The results clearly indicate that many young people have difculties with nancial terminology and budgeting. In addition to quantitative surveys, we conducted qualitative interviews with subjects in this age group from varied social backgrounds. The interviews revealed a huge gap between what

No more bonuses in branches

The extensive stakeholder dialogue that the Group conducted in Denmark in 2009 revealed widespread doubts about whether Danske Banks frontline employees are primarily the customers advisers or the Banks salespeople. In practice, they are both. The most important thing for us is obtaining a clear picture of all aspects of the customers nances. If a customer wants to borrow money to buy a house or a car,

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BUSINESS CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009

SEE A FULL OVERVIEW OF CUSTOMER OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES IN 2009 AT WWW.DANSKEBANK.COM/RESPONSIBILITY

we evaluate whether the customers budget can accommodate it. This may lead to a loan and perhaps also the sale of insurance. But our advisers must always recommend the product or solution that is best for the customer. To make sure that there is no doubt about this principle, in 2009 the Group decided to abolish bonus payments to all branch staff in Denmark.

from 2008 to 2009 varied greatly across the Danske Bank Group. It is not possible to detect a uniform effect of the turbulent times, either in feedback from our own customers or in the scores in the markets in general. The satisfaction scores from personal customers were either even with last years scores or higher in four of our six main national markets. The same was true of our SME customers in three of our six markets. In

Denmark, we have seen a decline in the scores of both personal and SME customers. Considering the circumstances and challenges in the Danish market in the past year, this development was not unexpected. Even though this drop is not unique to Danske Bank in the Danish market, we take it most seriously and have begun to address the issue through various initiatives. Read about them in more detail on pages 12-13.

Customer satisfaction
The change in customer satisfaction

CUSTOMER SATISFACTION (SCALE OF 0-100, RETAIL/CORPORATE)

Danske Bank Denmark Fokus Bank, Norway* Danske Bank, Sweden* National Irish Bank, Ireland* Northern Bank, Northern Ireland* Sampo Bank, Finland* * The number of retail customers was stated inaccurately in 2008.

2009
67/72 69/68 77/73 76/64 73/72 68/66

2008
73/76 69/67 79/80 74/70 72/70 64/61

CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009 BUSINESS

15

Investing responsibly
In 2008, the Danske Bank Group introduced a policy for socially responsible investment (SRI) and a screening framework to ensure that the funds we invest on behalf of our customers are not placed in companies that violate internationally recognised standards for human rights, working conditions, the environment and anti-corruption. Since its inception, we have excluded 24 companies that did not comply with the policy. We have also begun dialogues with a number of companies. The SRI programme has been well received by the Groups stakeholders. Danske Capitals institutional customers welcomed the policy and the processes we have adopted to exclude noncompliant companies. Major Danish local authorities have asked Danske Capital to help them

integrate environmental, social and governance issues structurally in their investment decision-making process. These concerns are addressed by Danske Capitals current programme.

Diversifying the debate

Last year the Groups investment policy received increasing attention, not only from institutional customers but also from retail customers, the media, NGOs and politicians. Especially in Norway and Denmark, public and media interest intensied in 2009. The response from customers was very clear: SRI considerations are very important to them when banks and pension companies manage their assets. At Danske Bank, we want to retain the trust and condence of our customers. To do this, we maintain transparency about what we do and give convenient access to exclusion lists and portfolio contents on our Web site. In order to provide information and promote a diversied debate about SRI, Danske Bank has joined Dansif (the Danish Social Investment Forum). This work will continue in 2010.

PRI
In January 2010 the Danske Bank Group Executive Board decided to sign on to the UN Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI), committing the Group to applying six principles in our day-to-day investment processes. The PRI initiative provides a voluntary and aspirational framework for incorporating environmental, social and governance issues into mainstream investment decision-making and ownership practices. Our decision to endorse the PRI reects our ambition to align our environmental and social performance with the highest corporate standards. The principles will be implemented in 2010.

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BUSINESS CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009

SEE A FULL OVERVIEW OF CUSTOMER OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES IN 2009 AT WWW.DANSKEBANK.COM/RESPONSIBILITY

Responsible sourcing
In 2006, the Danske Bank Group introduced a number of environmental standards to be met by suppliers and selected products. In 2007, the Group signed the UN Global Compact, committing ourselves to promoting human rights, labour standards and environmental concerns.

We have decided to expand our supplier initiative by establishing an overall framework for responsible sourcing in order to identify social, ethical and environmental risks across the supply chain. The framework will allow us to actively promote compliance with international standards and guidelines among our suppliers and to limit

our own business risks. In 2010, we will identify our strategic suppliers and related risks. On the basis of this inventory, we will formulate a responsible sourcing policy and establish an adequate framework for handling suppliers. We will also establish a responsible sourcing board to ensure a systematic review of the Groups suppliers.

BUSINESS OBJECTIVES 2010

Minimise social and environmental risks among strategic suppliers Launch online advisory programme for 18-27 year olds at country units Ensure that the Groups products and advisory programmes meet the needs of the next generation of consumers Implement UN Principles for Responsible Investment

GOALS AND ACTIVITIES 2010

Establish framework for handling strategic suppliers. Launch responsible sourcing policy. Set up responsible sourcing board. Roll out Mind Your Money in Denmark, Finland, Sweden and Norway. Publish research and surveys. Continue stakeholder dialogue. Implement principles in our day-to-day investment process.

CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009 BUSINESS

17

Employees

Supporting our employees in challenging times

The nancial crisis strongly affected every part of the Danske Bank Group. As the situation changed for our customers and our business generally, so did our staffs daily work. During such times, the Group has a responsibility to take special care of employees, whether it is by equipping them to deal with new customer demands or by ensuring a dignied process when staff reductions are necessary. the human face of the nancial sector in a general atmosphere of distrust towards banks, and their competence as advisers was severely questioned. This was doubtless a blow to their professional pride. And in Denmark, there was also some controversy about whether they are primarily the customers advisers or the Banks salespeople. To correct this impression, the Group decided to abolish bonuses for all branch staff. We wish to make clear that we place great importance on service ethics. As described in the Business section, Danske Bank responded to the public criticism with an extensive plan to become a Better Bank and regain customers trust. Advisers play a key role in this process. corporate customers with the best products and services available. This requires an investment in competency development. As part of its Better Bank strategy, Danske Bank Denmark earmarked DKr75m for developing advisers competencies. A key topic in the training programme is providing nancial services in a low-growth economy. Similar initiatives were introduced at other Group units. In Northern Ireland, Northern Bank ran a series of workshops to reinforce and augment the branch staffs skills in dealing with personal customer situations so that they could better help customers face the various challenges that the economic downturn has brought. The bank has always been committed to dealing fairly and sympathet-

Bank advisers in the line of re

The Banks frontline employees experienced the effects of the crisis directly. In their daily work at the branches, they faced many questions from customers, some of them dissatised with their nancial situation and some with the service they had received. Bank advisers also found themselves the centre of attention in the media in the past year. They were

Competencies for a Better Bank

In the coming years, the Group will continue to provide both retail and

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EMPLOYEES CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009

Even though we are not happy about the layoffs, the Group dealt with the process responsibly and union representatives felt well-informed.
PER TOUBRO / DANSKE BANK SECTION OF THE DANISH FINANCIAL SERVICES UNION

ically with customers in nancial difculties, but our employees had never experienced economic conditions as extreme as the current ones. Over 100 Northern Bank employees received training in areas such as debt problems that covered not only the practical and technical aspects but also the emotional effects of such issues.

to ensure a dignied process for all involved. The organisational units affected made thorough preparations focused on the managements role making sure that local managers did everything possible to lessen the stress and insecurity for the affected employees. Despite the hard times, our employees general satisfaction and motivation has not diminished. The results of our annual employee opinion survey show that our employees support the way we have dealt with the crisis. The rating of senior managements ability to make the right decisions and inform employees rose from an already high level. The survey also reects the difcult period we have been through, however, as our employees perception of the Groups image was signicantly lower than in the year before.

Robberies and assaults

Unfortunately, economic crises are often accompanied by an increase in robberies and assaults, and 2009 was no exception. As usual, Danske Bank Denmark accounted for the majority of the cases. Of a total of 38 robberies, 29 took place in Denmark. The Group has well-established procedures for preventing robberies and threats as well as efcient measures for dealing with the cases we cannot avoid. In 2009 we made additional efforts to prevent stressful situations. For example, on the intranet we posted information about working with difcult customers that included a conict-resolution method developed by our Working Environment department.

Staff reductions
In 2009, the Danske Bank Group made a necessary but difcult decision to reduce the number of staff. Before the layoffs, the Group worked together with trade unions to mitigate the number of terminations by various means such as early retirement arrangements and a exible freeze on recruiting and lling vacated positions. Once the decision about the staff adjustments had been made, the key objective became careful planning

CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009 EMPLOYEES

19

ACTIVITIES 2009
Introduce Danica Health Promoter for all employees in Danica Pension Evaluate exibility and inclusion at the Groups individual units Conduct activities to promote examples of diversity and inclusion

RESULT

Meeting the 2009 objectives

The Danske Bank Group has become an international workplace. We have employees of many nationalities, and much of our daily work involves collaboration with colleagues in other countries. This is just one dimension of diversity that we want to optimise.

for a full-time position to be divided between two people, with all the activities and responsibilities of the job shared between them. Despite these initiatives, there are still areas where we are not fully exploiting the potential of our staff diversity. For instance, we want more women to pursue management careers (currently 34% of our managers are women). And while our staff generally believes that the Group offers great career opportunities (our employees rate this above the benchmark in the employee opinion survey), there are still some cultural and organisational barriers we need to address. For these reasons, in 2009 we launched additional initiatives to promote diversity and inclusion.

more inclusive culture. In 2009, we launched an internal campaign showcasing managers whom we consider positive role models, either in representing a particular employee group or by being exemplary diversity managers. Managers play a key part in making productive use of our diverse workforce. In 2009 we joined Diversity Lab, a business network founded by the Danish Institute for Human Rights for the purpose of developing diversity management tools. In order to ensure that the project is grounded in our organisation and that the tools we develop work in practice, our Shared Services Centre unit participated in a pilot project in which new methods to promote diversity and inclusion were tested. In 2010, we will integrate an inclusion training module in a course for new managers.

Utilising all competencies

The overall principle of our approach to diversity is to ensure the optimal utilisation of all staff competencies. We have a long tradition of putting this principle into practice. Our diversity initiatives include programmes for female managers, immigrant integration projects, part-time work for parents, and a special scheme for senior staff that was nominated for the Danish Ministry of Employments 2009 senior award. In Ireland, a jobsharing scheme makes it possible

Role models show the way

Role models are an effective means of inspiring change towards a

20

EMPLOYEES CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009

Working systematically on diversity management will certainly have a signicant bottom-line effect, for example because of increased productivity in the collaboration with our Indian colleagues both in Denmark and in Bangalore.
PETER DALSGAARD / VICE PRESIDENT, CONSULTANCY SERVICES

Flexible career models

Job exibility enables employees to adapt individual career models according to their changing needs in various phases of their lives. We believe this is of mutual benet to employees and our business. We therefore offer exible working arrangements such as job-sharing schemes and telecommuting when they t into local work routines. Our 2009 employee opinion survey included questions about job exibility, and the results indicate that our staff feel they have a high level of exibility.

The Board of Directors Renumeration Committee monitors trends in the Groups salary and bonus framework, including the incentive programmes. The Committee reports to the full Board of Directors and makes preparations for the Boards consideration of human resource issues, particularly terms and conditions of employment, remuneration and retirement benets. As stipulated in the Act on nancial stability, the Danske Bank Group will not use share options as part of management compensation until September 2010, and in 2008 and 2009 the Executive Board did not receive any performance-based compensation. The actual remuneration of members of Danske Banks Board of Directors and Executive Board is disclosed in the annual report and also on the Corporate Governance Web site.

Promoting employee health

In 2009, Danica Pension, the Groups life and pension company, developed a programme for business customers that is intended to prevent health problems and absence due to illness. Danica decided to take its own medicine and offered a health check-up to its entire staff. Some 571 employees accepted the offer and had their blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar, body mass index and general tness measured. After the check-up, each employee received personal guidance and suggestions for improvements. The health condition of most of the employees fell into the category good and normal. In 2010, Danica will follow up on this effort by conducting a survey of the participants in the 2009 check-up.

Management remuneration
The principles of the Danske Bank Groups remuneration policy reect the Groups objectives of a sound governance process and long-term value creation for the Groups shareholders.

CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009 EMPLOYEES

21

This job has proved to be equally challenging and rewarding both professionally and personally.
LENE FRIIS ANDERSEN / VOLUNTEER DEBT ADVISER

Volunteer debt advisers

Corporate volunteering is common in many countries where the Group operates. In Ireland and Northern Ireland, for instance, some of our staff members share their professional knowledge with society by teaching personal nance in the schools. In Denmark, corporate volunteering is less common, but the Groups new debt advisory project gives some of our Danish employees a

chance to make a difference. In 2009, a number of philanthropic organisations launched a debt advisory service with funds from the Danish Ministry of the Interior and Social Affairs. The programme is intended to help people with debt problems manage their nances, and it is staffed by volunteers who work in the banking sector. The Danske Bank Group considers this initiative fully in keeping

with our efforts to promote nancial literacy and supports the project by paying for a portion of the time that our employees spend serving as debt advisers. Many employees have applied to volunteer. The rst volunteers began advising people in autumn 2009, working in teams with attorneys, social workers and advisers from other banks.

EMPLOYEE OBJECTIVES 2010 Ensure diversity and inclusion among employees Run diversity role model campaign on the intranet Promote employee health

GOALS AND ACTIVITIES 2010 Implement inclusion training module in a course for new managers. Continue diversity role model campaign. Conduct follow-up survey.

22

EMPLOYEES CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009

SEE THE CR FACT BOOK AT WWW.DANSKEBANK.COM/RESPONSIBILITY FOR MORE EMPLOYEE DATA AND A BREAKDOWN BY COUNTRY

EMPLOYEE DATA
Staff details

GROUP 2009

COMMENTS

GROUP 2008

COMMENTS

Number of full-time employees, end of year Percentage of women in workforce (%) Percentage of women in management (%) Average age Average years of service
Work-life balance

22,093 57 34 42 15

23,624 58 34 42 15

Women working part-time Men working part-time Avg. No. of maternity leave days (days per employee on leave) Avg. No. of paternity leave days (days per employee on leave) Leaves of absence granted for other reasons (No. of employees granted leave of absence during year)
Health and safety

2,823 452 163 25 663 Ex BAL Ex BAL, NI Ex BAL

2,698 358 165 43 474 Ex BAL, Fl Ex BAL, Fl, NI Ex BAL, Fl

Absence due to illness (Avg. No. of days lost through illness per employee) No. injuries or post-traumatic stress related to robberies No. other physical or psychological injuries
Competency development

6.0 186 116

Ex BAL, FI

6.6 194 127

Ex BAL, Fl

Ex NO, BAL

Opportunities for professional and personal development as perceived by the employees (scale of 0-100)
Employee satisfaction

74

74

Employee satisfaction and motivation (scale of 0-100) Employee loyalty (scale of 0-100) Employee turnover (%)

72 78 6.2

72 78 8.4 Ex Fl

CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009 EMPLOYEES

23

Env ironment

The climate challenge continues

Climate moved to the top of the world agenda in 2009, which culminated in the UN Climate Change Conference (COP15) in Copenhagen in December. We followed the political process with great interest, since the outcome of the conference clearly sets the framework for the nancial sectors opportunities for environmental activity. For example, without a stable political framework and long-term objectives, it is difcult to set prices for greenhouse gases and to implement green investment strategies. The Danske Bank Group therefore supported the Copenhagen Communiqu on Climate Change and the UN Global Compacts Seal the Deal Campaign. Both campaigns sought to help bring about a strong, effective international climate agreement, with a rm commitment to emissions reductions. It was therefore disappointing that COP15 did not result in a binding agreement. The process showed how difcult it is to balance various interests while trying to share a common burden fairly. But the conference also gave evidence of political leaders commitment to nding a solution. Copenhagen was not the end of the road, but it can be a step on the way to an agreement in 2010. tions and impact of an increasingly carbon-constrained economy, for both the Group and our stakeholders. Carbon neutrality also acts as a catalyst for organisational efciency. The cost of offsetting emissions gives us an extra incentive to keep energy consumption and emissions to a minimum. From 2008 to 2009, the Group reduced its CO2 emissions by 15%. We achieved this reduction by curtailing travel and energy consumption and through a general decline in business activities. In December 2009, the Group joined the Climate Neutral Network, which was launched by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in 2008. The Climate Neutral Network consists of a number of companies, cities and individuals that are laying out strategies and plans to become climate-neutral over the

Carbon-neutral operations
The year 2009 was also an important time for climate matters internally at the Danske Bank Group. We achieved our ambitious goal of carbon neutrality through reductions of CO2 emissions and investments in external renewable energy projects. We offset a total of 56,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions. Our carbon-neutral status helps us better understand the implica-

24

ENVIRONMENT CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009

coming months, years and decades. It supports the exchange of information and networking to promote a transition to a low-emissions and eventually a climate-neutral society.

Climate and our business

The climate challenge is becoming an increasingly important condition that nancial services companies must take into account in their business both the risks and opportunities it presents. At the Danske Bank Group, we aim to take advantage of the opportunities in our business and also take into consideration the risks that are becoming evident. The Groups pursuit of these opportunities includes developing a green policy for corporate car leasing, trading carbon allowances, climate investments and providing information to customers that promotes climate-friendly homes. We also consider climate opportunities and risks in our industry research, thus

giving them an inuence on our credit granting. For example, the EUs carbon allowance regulations have a strong effect on energy-intensive industries. If rising expenses for the purchase of carbon allowances cannot be passed on to customers, the regulations will result in lower earnings and credit quality.

Bank Group has a broad outreach to stakeholders and a prominent platform for sharing knowledge on the climate change challenge. In 2009, Danske Bank Denmark, Realkredit Denmark (our mortgage nance subsidiary) and home (our real estate agency) joined a partnership in the Danish Ministry of Climate and Energys 1 tonne less campaign. The campaign encourages people to reduce their personal carbon footprint by 1 tonne. Since the Group is a mortgage nance provider, its participation included showing homeowners how they can improve energy efciency, for example by investing in renewable energy or better insulation. We also tried a new way of communicating with customers in our interactive Climate Magazine, which was accessible from our Danish Web site and online banking facilities.

Investing in climate
In October 2009, Danske Invest launched KlimaTrends (ClimateTrends), a new mutual fund that invests in companies that are expected to respond well to the climate challenge. The investment universe is not limited to green companies but includes companies that develop technologies to moderate climate change and companies with a good strategy for adapting to climate change.

Engaging our customers

As a large enterprise, the Danske

CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009 ENVIRONMENT

25

ACTIVITIES 2009
Achieve carbon neutrality by December 2009 Implement the environmental management system in Finland and the Baltic states Raise supplier requirements

RESULT

Meeting the 2009 objectives

The nancial crisis not only affected the Groups earnings; it also altered our environmental performance. We achieved some of our planned energy reductions earlier than expected because of branch closures and reduced activity. Investments in energy-efcient ofces and digital communication reduced our costs as well as our environmental impact. The Groups strong focus on cost savings thus often goes hand in hand with environmental efciency. Going forward, we expect to nd even more synergies.

over two years. From 2008 to 2009, the reductions totalled 35%. We estimate that we saved 871 tonnes of CO2 with the TelePresence meetings alone. Travel also declined in 2009 because the Group completed the IT integration of Sampo Bank.

Identifying potential reductions

In 2008, as part of the effort to reduce energy consumption and CO2 emissions at the Group head ofces and branches, we started identifying possible energy-saving projects. We completed the identication phase at the head ofce and large branches in Denmark, and the same process began in Norway, Ireland, Northern Ireland and Finland. This inventory has given us valuable information we can use to prioritise our investments.

electronic media as an alternative to ordinary mail for document distribution. The study showed that changing to the electronic mail system has a positive effect on the environment. Electronic mail proved better in all aspects of the survey impact on climate, acidication, smog formation, fossil-fuel consumption and renewable energy. For several years, the Danske Bank Group has worked on digitising a wide range of processes, mainly to optimise customer service and minimise paper consumption. One initiative is intended to increase the number of customers who receive account statements, annual summaries and pay slips by electronic media instead of in conventional paper documents. At the end of 2009, more than 1.7 million customers had received more than 32 million documents via the Internet.

Reducing travel
In 2008-09, the Group established 16 studios for TelePresence meetings in order to reduce travel, costs and environmental impact. On the basis of this investment, the Group set an objective of reducing CO2 emissions from air travel by 15%

Digital banking
In 2008, the Danske Bank Group took part in a research project to quantify the environmental effects of using

26

ENVIRONMENT CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009

Reductions from 2008 to 2009

31%
Air travel

8%
Energy consumption

18%
Paper consumption

SEE A FULL OVERVIEW OF ENVIRONMENTAL OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES IN 2009 AT WWW.DANSKEBANK.COM/RESPONSIBILITY

The Group is also working to enable customers to sign electronic documents with digital signatures, either at home or at a branch ofce. The project will lead to faster processing, less expensive products and reduced paper consumption. The Group has set a goal that 80% of all credit approvals will be made electronically by the end of 2010.

for cleaning supplies and paint in 2009.

Green company cars

In 2008, the Group implemented a green car policy stipulating that company cars must generally be in classes A to E of the EU eco-label scheme. The policy reduces fuel consumption and thus costs as well as CO2 emissions. The Group estimates that it brought a 10% reduction of CO2 emissions in 2009. Since fuel-efcient cars are becoming more readily available, the Group decided to strengthen the policy. As of 2010, all new company cars must be in classes A to D. We expect this change to reduce CO2 emissions from company cars by another 10% in the next two years.

mental impact. The system builds on the ISO 14001 standard, and in 2009 it was updated to integrate the ISO 14064 requirements on the quantication and reporting of greenhouse gas emissions and reductions. The environmental management process was further strengthened by the implementation of a new IT system for data collection and reporting. One objective for the EMS in 2009 was to expand its coverage to Finland and the Baltic states. With procedures and objectives in place, the implementation in Finland is well under way, although the system has not yet undergone the rst internal audit. The implementation in the Baltic states was postponed because the difcult nancial conditions in the region require the organisations full attention.

Raise supplier requirements

In 2009, the Danske Bank Group received an award from the Danish Ministry of the Environment for having one of the best green purchasing policies. The process of integrating environmental requirements in the purchasing process began in 2006, and now more than 74% of the Groups purchases of ofce equipment, IT, merchandise, paper, cleaning supplies and the like come from suppliers with an environmental management system. The Group set new requirements

Expanding the EMS

The Groups environmental management system (EMS) helps us stay focused on improving our environ-

CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009 ENVIRONMENT

27

ENVIRONMENTAL OBJECTIVES 2010 Group objectives Extend and develop environmental management system (EMS) Continued focus on climate and CO2 reductions Improve internal control procedures for environmental data. Finish implementation of EMS in Finland. Reduce the Groups CO2 emissions from travel by 15% from 2008 to 2010. Set group-wide target for energy reduction. Implement new lighting programme. Identify further potential for digitising and reduction of paper. Implement updated business procedures for environmental screening. Continue internal awareness activities about the Groups environmental policy and climate strategy.

Continued focus on supplier requirements Increase the environmental awareness of the employees Selected national objectives Denmark Ireland Northern Ireland Norway Sweden Finland

Reduce energy consumption by 10% within ve years of 2008. Reduce energy consumption by 5% from 2009 level. Reduce energy consumption by 5% from 2009 level. Reduce energy consumption by 5% from 2008 level. Digitise all internal magazines. Launch energy-saving campaign for employees.

28

ENVIRONMENT CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009

SEE THE CR FACT BOOK AT WWW.DANSKEBANK.COM/RESPONSIBILITY FOR MORE ENVIRONMENTAL DATA AND A BREAKDOWN BY COUNTRY

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT Resource consumption * Electricity consumption (MWh) Electricity consumption per employee (MWh/FTE) Heat consumption (MWh) Heat consumption per employee (MWh/FTE) Water consumption (m ) ** Water consumption per employee (litre/FTE) ** Total road transport (1,000 km) Transport by company vehicles (1,000 km) Transport by employees cars (1,000 km) Air transport (1,000 km) Air transport per employee (km/FTE) Air transport, domestic (1,000 km) Air transport, international (1,000 km) Total paper consumption (tonnes) Paper consumption per employee (kg/FTE) Emissions CO2 emissions (tonnes) CO2 emissions per employee (tonnes/FTE) *
3

GROUP 2009

COMMENTS

GROUP 2008

COMMENTS

97,036 4.5 66,991 3.1 98,463 9,832 20,760 3,916 16,844 29,797 1,377 6,635 23,161 3,303 153 Ex NO, NI Ex branches NO, FIN

105,547 4.8 73,776 3.4 103,059 10,226 22,773 3,871 18,902 43,321 1,976 6,838 36,484 4,006 183 Ex NO, NI Ex branches NO, FIN

55,758 2.4

65,812 2.9

Data for 2008 and 2009 cover Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Ireland, Northern Ireland and Finland. The 2008 data have been changed since the 2008 report, because Finland is now included and the reporting period has changed. ** Only headquarters in DK, SE, NO and FIN. Data for 2008 and 2009 cover DK, SE, NO, IRL, NI and FIN and include estimated gures for the remainder of the Group.

CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009 ENVIRONMENT

29

Society

Financial skills for the next generation

The nancial crisis has clearly demonstrated the importance of personal nancial skills and nancial education for the well being of individuals, families and society at large. There is a growing recognition that nancial literacy is an important

Applying our core competencies

At Danske Bank, we feel a responsibility to help raise the level of nancial literacy among children and young people. We believe that providing basic training in nancial planning to children and young peo-

ties where we operate. Therefore, in 2008, we launched the Financial Literacy and Education Investment Programme. We have also conducted surveys and analyses to gain a better understanding of the main challenges and opportunities related to nancial literacy. In 2008 we launched Moneyville, an online universe targeted at 5-7 year olds. The Web site teaches children where money comes from, how to save it, how to understand its value, and how to set priorities for spending it. The site has proved to be a success. Within six months, it had around 1 million visitors.

Control Your Money offers opportunities to safely practice and apply mathematical skills in realistic situations. And with the option of carrying out real projects, it makes an inspiring tool for teachers.
DR. JUHANI TAKKINEN / TEACHER AT SEPN LUKIO HIGH SCHOOL, FINLAND

skill in life. Recent international studies indicate that there is a direct link between childrens nancial skills and their life prospects. The studies also show that many children do not learn basic nancial skills at home. In such cases, it is crucial that the schools can address this shortcoming.

ple today will help create a population of nancially responsible and self-reliant adults tomorrow. Such adults are valued banking customers. Financial knowledge is of course part of our core competencies and daily work. We wish to use these competencies to benet the socie-

Teaching nancial literacy

In order to reach children at an early age, teachers must be engaged and well prepared to teach basic nan-

30

SOCIETY CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009

Strengthening education of consumers now, when they are willing to receive it, should bring benets to the whole society in the long term. Therefore all [nancial] providers should treat nancial education as one of the post-crisis top priorities.
EUROPEAN COMMISSION: SECOND MEETING OF THE EXPERT GROUP ON FINANCIAL EDUCATION / APRIL 2009 BRUSSELS

cial skills. We therefore developed a Web site where teachers can get ideas on how to address nancial literacy in the classroom. The Teaching Financial Literacy site provides concrete examples of nancial issues in the daily lives of children and youths and other useful information. The rationale for this initiative is supported by an extensive survey of math teachers attitudes towards teaching nancial literacy in six countries (Denmark, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Northern Ireland and Ireland). Some 96% of the teachers nd it relevant to teach 10-15 year olds about personal nance, and 88% think it would be good if a non-commercial course on personal nances were available to them. Teaching Financial Literacy will be launched in Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Norway, Northern Ireland and Ireland in 2010.

From ction to reality

Some 93% of 10-15 year olds in the six countries receive pocket money and have their own mobile phones. Around 43% of them have used their mobile phones for purchases. These numbers clearly indicate that children handle money regularly. Fortunately, 84% of them also think it would be interesting to learn about money at school (source: YouGov Zapera, Financial literacy among 1015 year old children, 2009). In order to support this age groups ability to handle money responsibly, we launched an online universe, Control Your Money, which is to be used in schools. Control Your Money is intended to give pupils a basic understanding of nancial concepts and provide teachers with materials for teaching nancial literacy. Control Your Money was developed on the basis of the national

mathematics and personal nance curricula for schools in all six countries. The site contains missions that challenge pupils on nancial and mathematical issues that are already part of the curricula. The tasks include completing a budget, prioritising purchases and solving arithmetical problems. Since they are presented interactively, the tasks can be adapted to the individual users level, thus giving all the pupils a positive experience regardless of their qualications. In addition to the carrying out missions, the pupils will put their nancial skills into practice. The site includes a feature for creating an actual class project such as a eld trip. This initiative will be launched in the Nordic countries and Northern Ireland in 2010.

CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009 SOCIETY

31

ACTIVITIES 2009
Expand Moneyville with new features for 8-9 year olds Develop an online learning universe for 10-15 year olds Develop a Teaching Financial Literacy eLearning facility

RESULT

Meeting the 2009 objectives

At the Danske Bank Group, we fully support the principle that the overall responsibility for educating the next generation of consumers lies with families and schools. As a large nancial institution, however, we wish to assume our share of the responsibility. That is why we established the group-wide Financial Literacy and Education Investment Programme. The Programme gives us an opportunity to create new products and services that benet our current and future customers, society at large, and ultimately our own business.

carried out seven large surveys and analyses in our six primary markets in cooperation with YouGov Zapera, a research institute. This research ensures the quality and relevance of the activities, products and advisory services that we develop under the programme.

Raising awareness
In light of the current nancial crisis, we believe that disseminating the results of our surveys to a wider audience can create public debate and increased awareness. We have thus made an effort to put nancial literacy on the public agenda. We think that ultimately this can motivate people to improve their nancial skills. The best way for us to raise awareness of this issue is through our stakeholders and the media. In 2009, we held a range of meetings and provided information

to relevant stakeholders. These stakeholders include the European Commission, the UN Global Compact, government ministers, ranking members of parliament, consumer councils, school organisations and media specialists in the six countries. This stakeholder dialogue has provided us with a better understanding of our target groups and also possible pitfalls.

Moneyville expanded
In 2009, we expanded Moneyville with a section for 8-9 year olds. The aim of the new online universe was to introduce the principle of balancing income and spending, or budgeting, to this age group. The expanded Moneyville proved to be a great success. In the rst six months, it had more than 3 million visitors.

Knowledge at the core

All the initiatives in Danske Banks Financial Literacy and Education Investment Programme are supported by extensive research into the nancial challenges that our target groups are facing. So far, we have

32

SOCIETY CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009

I think Moneyville is a very exciting game. I am always happy to see private companies invest in projects that give our children and young people good digital educational tools.
BERTEL HAARDER / DANISH MINISTER FOR EDUCATION

SEE WWW.DANSKEBANK.COM/RESPONSIBILITY FOR A FULL OVERVIEW OF OUR OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES FOR SOCIETY IN 2009

SOCIETY OBJECTIVES 2010 Expand the Groups Financial Literacy Programme

GOALS AND ACTIVITIES 2010 Continue rollout of Moneyville. Roll out Teaching Financial Literacy for teachers. Roll out Control Your Money for pupils. Publish surveys and analyses. Continue stakeholder dialogues with experts and organisations. Strengthen publicity and communications about our research and initiatives.

Ensure that the Financial Literacy Programme meets the needs of the next generation of consumers Conduct activities that can raise awareness of nancial literacy issues

CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009 SOCIETY

33

KEY GROUP FACTS Business operations (DKr m) Total income Operating expenses Prot before tax Tax Net prot Business Banking customers, end of year (millions) Percentage of loans and advances to retail customers, end of year (%) Number of branches, end of year Employees Number of full-time employees, end of year Percentage of women in workforce (%) Percentage of women in management (%) Employee satisfaction and motivation (scale 0-100) Absence due to illness (avg. number of illness days per employee)* Environment Energy consumption (MWh per employee)* Total air travel (km per employee)* CO2 emissions (tonnes per employee)** Society Donations to society (DKr m) Hours of voluntary work (hours)
*

2009

2008

2007

59,339 28,907 4,755 3,042 1,713

43,043 28,726 2,229 1,193 1,036

45,063 25,070 19,306 4,436 14,870

5.1 46 734

5.0 40 804

5.0 40 842

22,093 57 34 72 6,0

23,624 58 34 72 6.6

23,632 57 31 72 7.1

7,6 1,377 2.4

8.2 1,976 2.9

7.8 1,813 2.9

28 3,823

28 5,189

29 5,200

Data for 2007 exclude Finland and the Baltic states. Data for 2008 and 2009 exclude the Baltic states.

** Data for 2007 cover Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Ireland and Northern Ireland.

34

KEY GROUP FACTS CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009

Reporting principles
REPORTS AND A GRI INDEX ARE AVAILABLE ON OUR WEB SITE AT WWW.DANSKEBANK.COM/RESPONSIBILITY The Corporate Responsibility 2009 report covers the activities of the Danske Bank Group, including subsidiaries. Companies that are under the operational control of the Group temporarily because of nancial hardship are not included in the reporting. The report provides a balanced and reasonable representation of the organisations nancial, environmental and social performance. The content of the Groups CR reporting has been selected in accordance with the G3 Sustainability Reporting Guidelines, including the Financial Services Sector Supplement. The reporting currently applies to GRI level B, self-declared. For more information about our application of the G3 Guidelines, please see the GRI Index at danskebank.com/responsibility. The G3 Guidelines also provide a tool for measuring our progress and communicating our performance in the context of the UN Global Compact principles. The GRI index therefore contains cross-references to the relevant principles of the Global Compact. To ensure data consistency, we have dened and described all the data in business procedures. We have also established internal control procedures to ensure that the data are reported according to the denitions. On the basis of our ndings, we work continually to improve the quality and scope of the CR data. At our CR Web site, you can access detailed reporting principles for each of the main CR areas: business, employees, environment and society. In order to document our efforts to become carbon neutral, we need to register the Groups emissions systematically. We have therefore created a greenhouse gas (GHG) inventory and set forth our methodology for quantifying and reporting GHG emissions according to the ISO 14064-1 standard. The work of measuring and reducing GHG emissions is integrated in the Groups environmental management system, which adheres to the ISO 14001 standard. The methodology can be found in the Climate section of the Group CR Web site.

CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 2009 REPORTING PRINCIPLES

35

DANSKE BANK A/S

HOLMENS KANAL 2-12 / DK - 1092 KBENHAVN K / TEL. +45 33 44 00 00

CVR-NR. 61 12 62 28 - KBENHAVN / WWW.DANSKEBANK.COM

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
If you have any questions about or comments on this report, please contact us by e-mail at responsibility@danskebank.com or by letter post:

Danske Bank A/S CR Secretariat Holmens Kanal 2-12 DK-1092 Kbenhavn K

Reports and a GRI index are available on our Web site at www.danskebank.com/responsibility.