The research company surveyed 150 UK banking executives, finding that although 100% of executives say that sustainability is integral to their business strategy, just over half of UK banks (59%) measure their environmental impact as part of sustainability targets.

They survey also indicated that lenders are offsetting non-sustainable practices with carbon credits. A total of 49% of UK banks are investing in carbon credit schemes as the priority initiative, signalling an increase from the 2021 Sustainable Banking Report.

The findings come as another survey conducted by Kearney revealed that that 40% of UK consumers would pay a 5-10% premium for a banking product if it was ESG.

One in ten consumers would actually switch their banking provider if it didn’t provide a suitable sustainable banking product for them.

Respondents to the Censuswide survey highlighted three barriers that need to be overcome to reach total sustainability, including the lack of universally recognised regulation and enforcement (31%), cultural legacies that need to be shifted, budget implications and limited knowledge of the market (25%).

A total of that 97% of UK banking executives said that ‘sustainable digitisation’ is the key to success. UK banks also believe in creating sustainable supply chains with nine in ten banking executives asserting that they ensure their suppliers are compliant with current sector-specific sustainability expectations.

Peter-Jan Van De Venn, strategy director fintech, Mobiquity, said: “Last year’s report showed that sustainability wasn’t even on the agenda nor was the planning of sustainable initiatives. Our 2022 report shows a continued growing awareness of sustainable banking with more institutions increasing their reporting at board level as well as integrating it into their business strategy – demonstrating a positive step in the right direction.

“Banks are also citing that sustainable banking increases profitability, operational efficiencies and customer loyalty. Meanwhile, they are holding their supply chain accountable with a large proportion of banks ensuring their customers and suppliers adopt sustainable practices.

“While there has been some good progress on placing sustainable banking at the top of the boardroom agenda, the report shows that there is still an issue with banks saying and not doing. Greenwashing is an ongoing challenge for banks. They will only be able to protect their reputation if they fully optimise the execution of their sustainable initiatives. This can be achieved by harnessing sustainable digitisation combined with a robust ESG measurement framework to track impact.”