The Energy Efficient Mortgages Initiative (EEMI) is delighted to announce that UBI BANCA has joined the Energy Efficient Mortgages Pilot Scheme, taking the number of pioneers to 58 lending institutions as of today. This group is paving the way for the launch of the market-led Energy Efficient Mortgage Label across Europe which will act as a qualitative benchmark for consumers, lenders and investors.

The EEM Label is the result of multisectoral governance and strong cooperation aimed at designing a new sustainable business model which delivers incentives and benefits for consumers, banks, utilities, SMEs, local authorities, regions and cities. This joint effort between the private and public sectors is intended to not only secure quality and transparency in relation to energy efficient mortgages, but also to deliver unprecedented coordinated support across sectors to the recovery from the COVID-19 crisis and to the implementation of the EU Green Deal. Against this background, these 58 lending institutions are joined by 44 supporting organisations throughout EU and by 17 national, European and International institutions of the 19 Advisory Council, which advises on the development of the Pilot Scheme in the market.

The EEMI more broadly aims at delivering a mortgage financing mechanism, according to which borrowers are incentivised to improve the energy efficiency of their properties or to acquire highly energy efficient properties, by way of favourable financial conditions linked to the mortgage. The Initiative is furthermore developing a data collection infrastructure for energy efficient mortgages.

Luca Bertalot, Energy Efficient Mortgages Initiative Coordinator, commented:

“It is with great pleasure that we welcome UBI BANCA as a new member of the Energy Efficient Mortgages Initiative Pilot Scheme. Their participation further strengthens the scheme in Italy, taking the total of participating Italian Banks to 16, and reinforces the link with the expectations of both the territory and consumers. We trust that the Initiative will play a paramount role in supporting the recovery of the real economy from the current crisis, as well as the concrete implementation of the EU Green Deal, offering new opportunities for consumers and businesses alike in terms of investments in the purchase and renovation of homes and commercial buildings.”

Rossella Leidi, Deputy General Manager of UBI Banca with responsibility for the Group’s sustainable development strategy, said:

“UBI BANCA is proud to be a partner of the Energy Efficient Mortgages Initiative Pilot Scheme which represents an important milestone in implementing social responsibility and sustainability strategies. By joining the scheme, UBI BANCA will adopt standards which are currently being tested as part of an EU-backed pilot program involving main banks and financial institutions.”

Natascia Noveri, Head of Marketing UBI Banca, said:

“The proposed standards will facilitate the lenders in understanding how the energy use and efficiency improvements impact on mortgage risks, and costumers in getting benefits from a more accurate risk evaluation.”

Contacts:

Luca Bertalot, Energy Efficient Mortgages Initiative Coordinator

E: lbertalot@hypo.org

Tel: +32 2 285 40 35

Notes to the Editor:

About the Energy Efficient Mortgage (EEM) Initiative

The Energy Efficient Mortgages (EEM) Initiative consists of:

§     The Energy Efficient Mortgages Action Plan (EeMAP) Initiative

§     The Energy Efficiency Data Protocol & Portal (EeDaPP) Initiative

The Energy Efficient Mortgages Action Plan (EeMAP) Initiative – led by the European Mortgage Federation-European Covered Bond Council (EMF-ECBC), Ca’ Foscari University of Venice, RICS, the Europe Regional Network of the World Green Building Council, E.ON and SAFE Goethe University Frankfurt–  aims to create an energy efficient mortgage through which homebuyers are incentivised to improve the energy efficiency of their building or acquire an already energy efficient property by way of favourable conditions linked to the mortgage. The cornerstone of the initiative is the assumption that energy efficiency has a risk mitigation effect for banks as a result of the impact on a borrower’s ability to service his/her loan and on the value of the property, a correlation which the EeMAP Initiative will seek to substantiate.

The Energy Efficiency Data Protocol and Portal (EeDaPP) Initiative – led by European Mortgage Federation-European Covered Bond Council (EMF-ECBC), Ca’ Foscari University of Venice, CRIF, European DataWarehouse, Hypoport, SAFE Goethe University Frankfurt and TXS  - aims to design and deliver a market-led protocol, which will enable the large-scale recording of data relating to energy efficient mortgage assets, via a standardised reporting template. The data will be accessed by way of a common, centralised portal, allowing for continuous tracking of the performance of the energy efficient mortgage assets, thereby also facilitating the earmarking of such assets for the purposes of energy efficient bond issuance.

For additional information on the pioneers, please visit: Pilot Scheme

The EeMAP and EeDaPP projects have received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 746205 and No 784979.