You may have seen the ads back in 2010 about banks and their stance on refusing to fund potentially harmful projects. The global stance is under an agreement called "The Equator Principles" but what is it and what does it cover?

Brief Background 

In October 2002, the World Bank Group's International Finance Corporation (IFC) met with a small number of banks in London to discuss the development of environmental  and social benchmarks, guidelines and policies that those in the financial industry could be globally adhered to. The decision was made to introduce an framework for the banking industry particularly addressing projects where financing may participate in increasing environmental or social issues  - for eg backing a new mine in a rainforest. In Washington DC on June 4th 2003 the first set of Equator Principles was launched by these inaugural banks .

During the first three years of implementation, more than 40 financial institutions from all around the world have adopted the principles.  

Participating Institutions 

If you are thinking about switching banks, see if they are on the list below. It may help you in your considerations. Australian institutions and international institutions commonly are written in bold. 

ABN AMRO Bank, N.V.
ANZ
Banco Bradesco
Banco de la República Oriental del Uruguay
Banco do Brasil
Banco Galicia
Banco Itaú
BankMuscat
Bank of America
BMO Financial Group
BTMU
Barclays plc
BBVA
BES Group
Calyon
Caja Navarra
CIBC
CIFI
Citigroup Inc.
CORPBANCA
Credit Suisse Group
Dexia Group
DnB Nor
Dresdner Bank
E+Co
EKF
Export Development Canada
Financial Bank
FMO
Fortis
HBOS
HSBC Group
HypoVereinsbank
ING Group
Intesa Sanpaolo
JPMorgan Chase
KBC
KfW IPEX-Bank
la Caixa
Lloyds TSB
Manulife
MCC
Mizuho Corporate Bank
Millennium bcp
National Australia Bank
Nordea
Nedbank Group
Rabobank Group
Royal Bank of Canada
Scotiabank
SEB
Societe Generale
Standard Chartered Bank
SMBC
TD Bank Financial Group
The Royal Bank of Scotland
Unibanco
Wachovia
Wells Fargo
WestLB AG
Westpac Banking Corporation

Notably, Commonwealth Bank of Australia is the only bank of the 'Big 4' not to be part of the program. If you are a CBA account holder, ask why this is so. Other Australian banks not participating are St.George, Bendigo Bank and all state based banks (Bank Of Queensland, Bank West etc). 

More research 

For up to date news on the Equator Principles,  visit the Equator Principles website. The site itself it very in depth and quite interesting as it covers news releases from participating countries all around the world. It also boasts a mailing list to keep updated via emails, and a handy FAQ section for the more technical questions. An interested document within their archieves is from internation law firm Allen Arthur Robinson from August 2005. It discusses the banks role under the agreement in a very easy to read format. It's great some one simply trying to get their head around the more technical componants without getting too complex. The document can be found here.