Fair Finance International

Fair Finance International (FFI) is an international civil society network of over 150 CSO partners and allies, coordinated by Oxfam Novib, that seeks to strengthen the commitment of banks and other financial institutions to social, environmental and human rights standards.

As a global network we use a rigorous methodology to assess, report on, and campaign for more responsible investment policies and practices. By benchmarking the investment policies and practices of financial institutions in critical areas such as human rights and climate impact, FFI enables citizens to demand more socially responsible, fair, and sustainable investments and engages with policy makers to advocate for stricter standards for the financial sector.

FFI builds on a pioneering model developed in the Netherlands since 2009; the Eerlijke Geldwijzer,  followed by a similar initiative in Brazil in 2011, which demonstrated the potential for bringing about positive change in the ways the financial sector invests. The FFI network is now present in twenty-four countries across four continents with coalitions in Asia working with our regional partner Fair Finance Asia.

The “Race to the Top”

Through their investments in companies and projects and their financial and trading activities, the banking sector as well as insurance companies and pension funds have a major influence on sustainable development, poverty reduction, human rights, societies and the environment.

We advocate the “do no harm” principle and we also want banks to progressively increase their transparency and accountability and improve their policies and behaviour. The aim of Fair Finance International is to initiate a ‘race to the top’ between banks and financial institutions on Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG), transparency issues and other human rights standards. Ideally, this brings about a self-reinforcing process whereby banks continuously raise their adherence to those standards, ultimately resulting in more sustainable lending, investments and asset management all over the world.

For this to happen, it is crucial that customers of banks receive well-researched information on bank policies and practices, to inform their choices and ability to act as responsible citizens.

The Fair Finance Methodology

A key part of our Fair Finance work is our comprehensive and rigorous Methodology. Developed by our network with policy research experts Profundo,  the methodology is used to assess Financial Institutions' approach to sustainability across key themes such as corruption, tax evasion, gender equality, human rights, and climate change. By assessing how Financial Institutions incorporate sustainability considerations into their operations, we can score them on social responsibility.

The Methodology is aligned to international standards and is designed to be responsive to the countries and contexts a financial institution operates in.

In addition to policy rankings, FFI also publishes case studies, to assess how banks and investors implement their policies in practice. Find an overview of recent case studies here. The combined data of policy assessments and case studies form the basis of constructive fact-based dialogue across the sector for more responsible and sustainable financial policies and practices.