About us Sustainability & community

Responsible banking and investment position.

We want to help lead the way to a more sustainable, resilient New Zealand. Operating our business responsibly is a key part of this commitment.

We know we can have a positive impact for our customers, communities, shareholders and the environment through the companies we choose to provide services and lend to as a bank, or invest in on your behalf through managed funds like KiwiSaver.

Our commitments.

Our 2025 Sustainability Strategy

We are committed to reducing our operational carbon emissions by 30% from 2019 levels, remaining Toitū carbonzero certified, and enabling $10bn in sustainable finance by 2025. These commitments sit alongside other Sustainability Strategy goals which also focus on caring for people and communities, and growing the financial wellbeing of New Zealanders.

Our commitment to the Net Zero Banking Alliance (NZBA)

Westpac Group is a signatory to the United Nations-convened Net Zero Banking Alliance pledge. This signifies our commitment to achieving a Net Zero portfolio by 2050, and aligning all of our activities, including lending, to a 1.5 degree pathway. Read more about the Net Zero Banking Alliance.

Our investment commitments

BT Funds Management (NZ) Limited (BTNZ) is the funds management arm of Westpac in New Zealand and is the provider and issuer of the Westpac KiwiSaver Scheme.

At BTNZ, we support efforts to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2050 or sooner, in line with global efforts to limit warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, and we are committed to aligning our investments with a 1.5°C pathway.

Through BTNZ, we are also a signatory to the UN Principles for Responsible Investment, and are publicly committed to integrating Environmental Social and Governance (ESG) factors into our investment decisions.

BTNZ is also a member of the Responsible Investment Association Australasia (RIAA), the Investor Group on Climate Change and Climate Action 100+, is committed to the Net Zero Asset Managers initiative, and is a recognised public supporter of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD).

These commitments and the milestones needed to achieve them will be reviewed regularly as it’s important that we meet our own commitments and the expectations of our customers and communities.

Customer considerations.

Excluded sectors

We are dedicated to taking action to minimise harm to the environment and our communities. One way we do this is carefully contemplating who we do business with.

We do not knowingly offer any banking services to:

Sector/area	Customers involved in
Illegal activity	Any company where the bank has reasonable concerns of illegal or unlicensed activity taking place
High-cost, low-value lenders	Payday lending Mobile traders (e.g mobile lending trucks)
Weapons	Controversial weapons banned under international agreements Nuclear weapons, except where they only contribute to government-controlled nuclear weapons programs in NATO countries that are authorised to possess nuclear weapons under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty
Primary sectors	Shark finning Commercial whaling Illegal, unrecorded and unregulated fishing and related activities Any activities giving rise to irresponsible ‘Land Grabbing’
Tobacco	Growing tobacco or manufacturing tobacco-based products

In addition to exclusions for the sectors above, Westpac New Zealand does not offer new lending to customers whose main business activity is coal mining. We also consider exposure to financial crime and money laundering risks. We may not offer banking services to customers operating in industries that provide undue risk to the bank or our customers.

Sensitive sectors

We work with organisations in some sensitive sectors to empower them to improve ethical business practices in their industry, as well as proactively manage any relevant Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) risks.

All material lending in the sectors below is subject to enhanced due diligence, including an ESG assessment to determine appropriate finance arrangements, if any.

Sector/area	Customers involved in
Human rights	Businesses where we do not have confidence that a customer will meaningfully prevent adverse human rights impacts, or provide for or cooperate in remediation where they have caused or contributed to adverse impacts
Energy and extractive industries	Oil and gas Electricity generation
High-cost lending providers	Third tier lenders Buy now pay later
Primary sectors	Palm oil Soy Timber

Business customers in industries subject to licensing or regulation will also be assessed on their ability and willingness to durably comply with relevant standards.

KiwiSaver & funds management.

As one of New Zealand’s largest fund managers, where we invest has the potential to shape the future for our environment, our communities, and our customers.

Many of our funds are independently certified by RIAA¹. This means these funds have implemented an investment style and process that systematically takes into account environmental, social, governance considerations, and that our investment process has been externally verified.

Sustainable Investment Policy

We operate under a Sustainable Investment Policy. The Policy is built on four pillars, which guide our investment analysis and decisions, either directly or through our external investment managers, and are summarised below:

Positive outcomes: Climate change, ecosystem destruction and biodiversity loss are some of the most significant issues impacting the environment and the economy. We are prioritising our actions in these areas.

Integration: We work to integrate ESG factors into investment decisions and expect our underlying investment managers to do the same.

Stewardship: We recognise the importance of active stewardship. We implement stewardship through exercising voting rights and engaging with companies, as well as collaborating with the industry on various leadership initiatives.

Exclusions: We don’t invest in companies operating outside of our sustainable investing criteria:

Sector/Area	Companies that
International conventions	Breach International Conventions to which New Zealand is a party Derive revenue from whale meat processing
Minimum social safeguards	Breach human, labour and environmental principles in line with the UN Global Compact Derive any revenue from predatory lending
Controversial and other weapons	Manufacture controversial weapons including, but not limited to: Cluster munitions or anti-personnel mines Nuclear, biological or chemical weapons Uranium White phosphorus mining Derive revenue from both the manufacture and sale of assault weapons to civilian customers
Tobacco manufacture	Derive revenue from the manufacture of tobacco products
Fossil fuels	Has its primary activity classified as oil and gas drilling, exploration and production, equipment and services, or integrated oil and gas OR Derive more than 10% of their of revenue from oil and gas fossil fuel activity, including, but not limited to: Oil and gas exploration, production or refining (incl Artic exploration) Extraction of oil sands Shale energy exploration or production
Coal mining and production	Derive more than 10% of their revenue from thermal coal mining and production
Coal electricity generation	Derive more than 50% of their revenue from generating electricity from coal
Other	We may also, from time to time, exclude companies that do not align with our Sustainable Investment values or beliefs.

BTNZ relies on advice from its third-party ESG research provider(s) for screening criteria, standards and assessments.

For a full list of investment exclusions including revenue thresholds, full definitions, and details on how exclusions are managed can be found in our full Sustainable Investment Policy.

Where we use derivative based instruments or (in the rare instance) third-party fund or exchange traded funds, we aim to align our exclusions as closely as possible, and for third-party or exchange traded funds at a minimum we apply our fossil fuel and weapons exclusions as required by our default KiwiSaver status.

BT Funds Management (NZ) Limited is the scheme provider and issuer, and Westpac New Zealand Limited is a distributor, of the Westpac KiwiSaver Scheme. A copy of the Product Disclosure Statement is available from westpac.co.nz.

¹ The Westpac KiwiSaver Scheme funds have been certified, except for the Cash Fund and CPP No 5 Fund, by the Responsible Investment Association Australasia (RIAA). They have been certified by RIAA according to the strict operational and disclosure practices required under the Responsible Investment Certification Program. See www.responsiblereturns.com.au for more details.

The Responsible Investment Certification Program does not constitute financial product advice. Neither the Certification Symbol nor RIAA recommends to any person that any financial product is a suitable investment or that returns are guaranteed. Appropriate professional advice should be sought prior to making an investment decision. RIAA does not hold a Financial Advice Provider licence.