Responsible Finance and Investing
It’s clear that TD’s environmental responsibilities stretch beyond our own business operation and extend to the activities that we finance through both lending and investing. We work with our business clients and stakeholders to proactively mitigate environmental and related social risks in our financing activities.
Lending
The majority of our financing is based on personal and residential lending. Wholesale banking and commercial lending account for the remainder of our financing and are focused on companies based in North America. The products included in these transactions typically include loans, lines of credit, project and fixed-asset financing.
Approximately 5% of our total financing involves clients operating in environmentally and socially sensitive industries such as mining, oil and gas extraction, power & utilities, forestry, automotive, chemicals and manufacturing.
TD has established policies, procedures and reporting mechanisms to identify environmental and social risks. TD does not finance transactions relating to the following:
- Activities within World Heritage sites.
- Activities that would result in the degradation of protected critical natural habitats as designated by the World Conservation Union classification and International Financial Corporation standards.
- Activities that would involve the purchase of timber from illegal logging operations.
- Mountain top removal coal mining.
- Production or trade in any product or activity deemed illegal under host country laws or regulations (including those ratified under international conventions and agreements).
- Production or trade in wildlife or products regulated under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).
- Deals that directly relate to the trade in or manufacturing of material for nuclear, chemical or biological weapons or for land mines or cluster bombs.
- TD does not lend money for transactions that are directly related to the mining of “conflict” minerals.
Investing
As a signatory to the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment (UNPRI), TD Asset Management (TDAM) is committed to integrating environmental, social and governance (ESG) considerations into its investment decision-making process.
As part of its UNPRI commitment, TDAM publishes an annual report summarizing how the principles have been implemented and the progress so far (Implementation of the Principles for Responsible Investment (pdf)). TDAM adopted its Sustainable Investment Policy in 2009 and applies ESG considerations to all of its investments.
