The options for reducing our carbon footprint

• Our own real estate: Replacement of fossil-fuel heating systems, renovation of the building envelope, energy optimization of building operations
• Mobility: Company vehicles will have exclusively alternative drive systems
• Data centers: Operation with energy-efficient concepts and technologies.
• Financed emissions: Launch of instruments to reduce emissions from our investment activities.

We are setting the pace in our efforts for a better climate. In line with the energy and climate targets of the Swiss Post Group, we are reducing our own direct and indirect emissions. As a bank, this applies in particular to financed emissions.

From 2030 onwards, PostFinance intends to be climate-neutral in its own operations. This means that we aim to reduce the emissions we generate in our own operations and remove the unavoidable residual emissions from the atmosphere using appropriate measures.

By 2040, the Group as a whole plans to achieve its net zero target throughout Scopes 1 to 3 – in other words, to reduce total carbon emissions, including those across the value chain, by at least 90 percent and neutralize any remaining emissions.

What are financed emissions?

Financed emissions are the main option that banks have for reducing emissions. But what are financed emissions? Banks are active on the capital market with customer funds. PostFinance mainly invests in corporate bonds and thus in companies that are responsible for generating a certain amount of greenhouse gases. Because PostFinance is invested in these companies, it is “allocated” a certain share of these emissions as a financial institution. These indirect emissions are many times higher than our own emissions generated by our real estate operations or company vehicles, for example, even if they are much less “visible” at first glance.