Fifth Third Bancorp published its 2016 annual report on corporate social responsibility (CSR), which includes results of its $30 billion community commitment and provides information on its efforts to serve its communities, employees, and the environment.
“Fifth Third Bank’s commitment to good citizenship is tangible. It is defined, articulated and communicated in our 2016 CSR Report to help hold us accountable to the people and communities we serve,” Brian Lamb, executive vice president and chief corporate social responsibility and reputation officer, said. “We are pleased to have worked so closely, and with so many across our footprint, to live the commitment to strong citizenship. It’s what building a better kind of bank is all about—the kind of bank that fundamentally improves the lives of customers and the wellbeing of communities.”
The interactive report provides lending, investment and service progress under the $30 billion community commitment. It also includes feature stories about Fifth Third Impact Programming, including its $19.1 million in community donations, expansions in hiring for both its mortgage and small business units, as well as progress toward financially empowering people at all ages and stages of life.
The CSR Report also discloses Fifth Third’s employee demographic data, making it one of the first regional banks to publicly share the data. The report also notes the demographic data of its board of directors.
The CSR Report is organized into five sections, representing its constituencies — consumers, communities, businesses, employees and the planet.
Among its achievements, Fifth Third educated 3,700 community members through its Empower U program, and offered its Young Bankers Club in all of its Consumer Bank markets for the first time. Fifth Third also signed a multi-year contract with EverFi, Inc., to create a new financial education and entrepreneurship course for high school students.
The Fifth Third Community Development Corporation invested more than $188 million in affordable housing, small business and historic preservation projects in 2016. It also made $19.1 million in philanthropic donations to communities.
Fifth Third also made $1.96 billion in small business loans in 2016, including $138.7 million in SBA loans. Fifth Third made a $465,000 grant to the Accion U.S. Network to support lending to undeserved small businesses in Illinois, Indiana, Florida, Michigan and Ohio.
The bank expanded medical coverage for additional services like autism services and infertility treatments, and laid the groundwork for an expanded parental leave program for Fifth Third employee parents. The Company also made plans for its new Maternity Concierge program.
To help the environment, Fifth Third launched an LED lighting retrofit program, commenced implementation of the new OurWorkplace open office standard, and made organizational changes that will accelerate progress in the years ahead.