Management and future development of the Equator Principles Limited
Management of the Equator Principles Limited
Organizational management of the Equator Principles Limited
Equator Principles Financial Institutions (EPFIs) adopted the Governance Rules and established the Equator Principles (EP) Association in July 2010. EP Association was the unincorporated association of member EPFIs whose object was the management, administration and development of the Equator Principles.
As of January 2024, the EP Association was replaced by a new legal structure and the Equator Principles are now legally represented by Equator Principles Limited.
However, the Equator Principles are still governed by the Steering Committee, supported by the Office of the Equator Principles which consists of the CEO and the Secretariat.
The Equator Principles Limited management structure*
* Links to the Equator Principles Limited official website
Steering Committee
The Steering Committee co-ordinates management and development of the Equator Principles on behalf of the Signatories to the Equator Principles. The Steering Committee is elected by the Signatories to the Equator Principles. The Steering Committee consists of 8 EPFIs as from November 2023.
Office of the EP - CEO
In May 2023, the EP Limited appointed its first CEO. The CEO is responsible for the day to day leadership and management of the EPA, on behalf of the Steering Committee, and will deliver key initiatives set in the annual work plan.
Office of the EP - Secretariat
The Secretariat is responsible for the day to day management and administration of the Equator Principles (e.g. managing internal and external communications (including the official website), organization and facilitation of EP events). The Secretariat is provided by a third party entity.
Exchange of opinions with international NGOs
As key stakeholders, the international NGOs play an important role in the implementation of the Equator Principles. The EP Limited exchanges opinions, from time to time, on the progress of issues such as climate change, social risks, human rights and reporting and transparency with NGOs.
Revision of IFC Performance Standards
The IFC revised its Performance Standards (PS) in January 2012.
To reflect changes in the IFC PS, EPFIs revised the Equator Principles to focus on a number of themes, such as Biodiversity, Climate Change, and Social Risks, and launched the third iteration of the Equator Principles (EP III) in 2013. The current fourth iteration of the Equator Principles (EP4) has further strengthened these themes. Mizuho has started to apply EP4 from July 2020.
Accomplishments of the Equator Principles
Three changes to project finance
The Equator Principles have resulted in three major changes to project finance
- With the Equator Principles, environmental and social risks are now widely recognized by society as significant risk factors, in assessing the projects. In addition, the implementation of risk–responsive measures via an Action Plan, is now embedded in the financing agreement. As a result, consideration of environmental and social risks and the mitigation of risks have been prioritized, benefitting the global environment and local communities.
- The application of the Equator Principles to a project has become an important competitive factor for financial institutions in obtaining the position of lead arranger in project syndication. In addition, collaboration in coping with environmental and social risks has been encouraged among syndicate members. The establishment and dissemination of these Principles have given financial institutions focused initiatives when addressing environmental and social risks.
- The vigorous exchange of opinions on the environmental and social risks of a project has been encouraged among financial institutions, clients and environmental NGOs through the management of the Equator Principles and their application to project finance.
As described above, the Equator Principles have brought a variety of advantages to stakeholders including project–affected communities, financial institutions, clients and environmental NGOs.
Perspective
The EP Limited's Strategy
In October 2020, the Equator Principles (EP) Limited launched its first ever Strategy. This high-level statement sets out the directions for the EP Limited over the next few years and demonstrates the collective willingness of the EP Limited to continually improve.
20 years of the EP
June 2023 was the 20-year anniversary of the Equator Principles (EP). The EP remains a market proven risk framework and well recognized brand. Areas that may require further consideration to ensure that the EP remain the 'gold standard' in E&S risk management are being discussed among members.
As of August 2024, 130 financial institutions have adopted the Equator Principles.
Increasing the number of adopting financial institutions enhances the influence and leverage of the Equator Principles, which further leads to a decrease in environmental and social risks. Therefore, it is paramount for the EP Limited to continue outreaching to those financial institutions that have not yet adopted the Equator Principles and to increase the number of members.