Our management of natural capital is approached from our sustainable finance strategy, from which we develop financial services that consider the conditions of the environment and the impact of investment decisions, subscription and development of products and services.
Natural capital
Sustainable finance approaches
At Grupo SURA as an investment manager with a focus on financial services, and specifically, with strategic investments in insurance companies and asset management, we address sustainable finance through the following:
Sustainable Investment
At Grupo SURA we pay special attention to the risks and opportunities related to environmental, social and government (ESG) issues, associated with a wide range of industries, since the way we interact with all sectors through investments is key to our sustainability.
Likewise, we understand that, as investors and relevant actors in the business context, we have the ability to influence to strengthen business dynamics that respect the environment, with a long-term vision and that respond to the expectations of stakeholders. This implies developing our investment businesses within the framework of co-responsibility, starting from a deep understanding of the impact of our investment decisions on the aforementioned problems.
For this reason, we have a Responsible Investment Framework Policy that establishes general parameters that seek to promote approaches to the incorporation of environmental, social and governance issues in the investment processes of the subsidiaries. Based on these parameters, the subsidiaries have developed specific manuals and processes to comply with the Policy.
SURA Asset Management, in particular, is a signatory of the Principles of Responsible Investment, PRI.
Additionally, there is a Responsible Investment Table, in which members of Suramericana, SURA AM, and Grupo SURA participate, in order to monitor compliance with the Policy and share best practices among the companies. Grupo SURA maintains different channels of dialogue with subsidiaries for the exchange of knowledge, the development of skills and the promotion of sustainable investment management.
In addition, Grupo SURA has a manual for the analysis of M & A operations. See here
In addition to the incorporation of environmental, social and governance criteria in investment decisions through policies, manuals and processes, progress has also been made, from the third-party asset management segment, in the design of funds that incorporate elements of integration of these criteria. Protección SA, a subsidiary of SURA Asset Management in Colombia, transformed 4 of its investment funds (United States Stocks with coverage, US Stocks without coverage, International Stocks with coverage, International Stocks without coverage), applying ESG criteria, seeking to reduce their time, the carbon footprint of these portfolios. As of December 2023, the value of these funds totaled USD 124.29 million.
Learn more about our Sustainable Investment Policy
Sustainable insurance
What does Sustainable Insurance mean at SURA?
The analysis of ESG risks is not new. Risks such as climate risks, those related to occupational health and safety or the prevention of money laundering and terrorist financing, have traditionally been considered in the underwriting process and are part of the ESG criteria.
ESG underwriting seeks to broaden the view to other non-financial criteria that can have financial impact and that influence the sustainability of companies in the short, medium and long term.
Our Sustainable Underwriting Policy
This policy does NOT have as its main objective the exclusion of sectors, but rather understand the level of risk and maturity of the clients, to guide our insurance decisions and accompany them in their strengthening and transition processes.
It is aligned with our Sustainability Policy and with national and international standards on sustainable insurance.
Who does this policy apply to?
This policy applies to the underwriting processes of the following lines of business of Seguros SURA Colombia:
- Mobility
- Property and Assets
- Logistics and maritime risks
- Compliance & Engineering
- Life and health
It is also a key input for the design of new risk management solutions and services.
What ESG risks do we consider?
Environmental:
We assess physical and transition risks related to environmental factors such as emissions, water and energy use, waste management, biodiversity, hazardous substances and animal welfare. We also analyze how these factors can impact or be impacted by the company’s activity.
Social:
We analyze the positive or negative impacts that business activity can generate on its stakeholders, including human rights, working conditions, health and safety, community development, data privacy, public order contexts, and aspects related to diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Governance:
We review how the organization is managed, its business ethics, transparency, regulatory compliance, risk management and stakeholder relations.
These issues are not the only ones we analyze. The approach is adjusted according to the economic activity and sector of each client, identifying the ESG factors that are really material for their operation. This understanding is articulated with the characteristics of each solution in the portfolio and its associated risks in the underwriting process. We also consider emerging risks associated with new regulations, technological changes and societal expectations.
How do we integrate ESG criteria into underwriting?
Prioritization by sectors
We carry out a more in-depth analysis of sectors with the greatest ESG impact, which we classify into high, medium and low risk levels, according to their materiality and context. The fact that a sector has a higher level of impact does not mean that it is not insurable. It means that we expect risk management and a level of maturity commensurate with the nature of your business.
ESG maturity level assessment
We assess how each company manages its ESG risks and its ability to identify, mitigate and adapt to the impacts arising from its activity.
In general, companies can be located in:
- Minimum standards, mainly associated with regulatory compliance.
- Best practices, aligned with recognized standards, certifications, or frameworks.
This allows us to adjust insurance conditions and, when necessary, define support plans to strengthen risk management.
Exclusions
In line with our corporate principles of respect, responsibility, transparency and equity, SURA refrains from subscribing to business in companies, projects or vehicles that are directly linked to the following activities:
- Controversial weapons: anti-personnel mines, nuclear weapons, cluster weapons, biological and chemical weapons, depleted uranium munitions, white phosphorus munitions.
- Tobacco: Companies whose main activity is the planting, production, manufacture or wholesale distribution of tobacco products, or those that obtain more than 10% of their income from such activities. General retail that sells tobacco products as part of a broader offer is not included.
- Pornography: activities related to the production and marketing of pornography.
- Thermal coal: new coal mines or new thermal coal-based power generation plants.
- Unconventional hydrocarbons: tar sands, Arctic oil and gas, ultra-deepwater oil and gas (UDW) or energy generation based on these.
The assessment considers the company’s level of exposure to these activities within its business model and its relative weight in revenues and operations.
In specific cases, we will be able to analyze companies with verifiable transition commitments and demonstrable progress. These guidelines are reviewed periodically to maintain their consistency in the face of regulatory and sectoral developments.
Promotion of projects with a positive environmental and social impact
In addition to defining excluded activities, we actively promote insurance solutions that support the transition to more resilient and responsible production models.
We actively promote activities aligned with Colombia’s Green Taxonomy and our internal Sustainable Insurance Taxonomy.
Engagement, follow-up and decision-making
At SURA, we monitor the ESG commitments defined in the underwriting process and document decisions to ensure coherence, traceability and consistency.
When a case requires a more detailed analysis, we activate internal review instances that allow us to evaluate situations of greater complexity with appropriate technical and governance criteria. The escalation process goes through the ESG Committee.
Through this process, we work with our clients on strengthening and improvement plans, accompanying their transition processes in accordance with the reality of the country, the economic sector and the business segment.
Transparency, Governance and Disclosure
This policy is public and reflects our commitment to transparency. Its implementation, monitoring and continuous improvement are in charge of the ESG Committee, which conducts an annual review and communicates progress in our Integrated Sustainability Report.
Results in 2025
| Indicator | Result |
|---|---|
| Percentage of clients the company has engaged with and/or informed about ESG related risks and opportunities in non-life/non-health insurance sector | 8,2% |
| Number of high-risk ESG cases which were escalated for further review in the last financial year | Cases |
|---|---|
| Aproved | 25 |
| Aproved with conditions | 5 |
| Aproved with recommendations | 4 |
| Closed without evaluation | 25 |
| Total general | 59 |
Climate Change
At Grupo SURA we recognize the importance of incorporating climate change and its implications in strategic planning.
The way we interact with all sectors of the economy, through insurance, institutional investments and lending activity, exposes us to various impacts associated with different industries. And, at the same time, it confronts us with opportunities to generate value.
For this reason, our companies work on the integration of different actions for climate management, incorporating the recommendations of TCFD as follows:
Strategy
In Grupo SURA we have a strategic risk process that seeks to identify, characterize, evaluate, manage and monitor all those risks that, due to their nature and correlations in the portfolio, have the potential to significantly impact the company’s strategy. One of these risks identified is climate change. In this sense, the company has advanced in its characterization through the identification of risk scenarios associated with the impacts of climate change at an ecological level (see report). Currently, a project is being executed that seeks to prioritize the most representative climate risks for Grupo SURA and then analyze their financial impact through the use of different scenarios.
In turn, subsidiary companies continue to execute their climate risk management strategy in accordance with the specific conditions of their business. In Suramericana, this strategy is addressed through the areas of Trend and Risk Management and Geosciences. On the one hand, the Trend and Risk Management teams have observatories of Variability and Climate Change trends, which seekto collect information about the transition risks that may affect different sectors, in order to build reports that are shared with customers. On the other hand, Geosciences department develops periodic analyses of hydrometereological variables that seek to understand the exposure, of both clients and the company, to extreme weather events. These analyses allow the company to identify clusters of risk to implement prevention measures. In addition, it has a geographic information system, available to customers, through which different sources of risks, including climate risks, can be analyzed in a georeferenced manner.
Finally, Suramericana has product design teams that have incorporated climate variables for the development of solutions such as Agro Insurance, renewable energy insurance, energy efficiency insurance and sustainable construction insurance.
At SURA AM, the sustainable investment strategy has climate change as its strategic pillar. It has made progress in modifying investment funds that seek to reduce its carbon footprint and has investment analysis tools that involve climate variables. In addition, it is part of the Portfolio Decarbonization Coalition and is developing a work plan for measuring the portfolio’s carbon footprint, in order to build a baseline that serves as a reference for the establishment of reduction targets. (See Sustainable Investment section).
Risk management and scenarios
Grupo SURA includes climate change in its risk management process, identifying it as a strategic risk. In addition, it continues in the process of moving towards a more informed understanding of the financial impact of climate risks on its portfolio. For this, the company has designed a project in which it is intended to quantify and monetize, through the use of scenarios, these impacts.
For its part, Suramericana, through the Geosciences and Risk team, has carried out quantitative models of precipitation, temperature and winds using physical risk scenarios (RCP2.6, 4.5, 6.0, 8.5) to manage risks through geographical diversification, anticipated mitigation measures, portfolio change and new technologies. In addition, transition risk analyses are carried out through qualitative scenarios based on the signals identified by the Geosciences and GTR (Trends and Risks Management) teams in the trend observatories. This makes it possible to determine the threat level of extreme weather events associated with climate change such as: hurricanes, floods, droughts, fires and hailstorms. This assessment helps to control the accumulation of risk in those areas where a high level of threat is identified and to manage the risk of customers to contribute to the sustainability of the business.
In the case of SURA AM, climate risk management is carried out in the management of its portfolio through the sustainable investment strategy. In this way, SURA AM recognizes climate management as a pillar of this strategy. Likewise, in the next two years it expects to have a process for the analysis of financial impact scenarios. For now, when it comes to investment decisions in public markets (equity and corporate loans), ad hoc scenario analysis is included in sectors with high exposure to climate risks (energy, oil and gas and food and beverage industries) for which internal investigations based on the possible impact of energy policies or climate events are labeled through internal tools and public information from issuers.
Governance
At Grupo SURA, climate risk management is led by Corporate Risk and Corporate Citizenship departments. In turn, the Board of Directors, through the Risk and Sustainability Committees, supervise, recommend and provide feedback on the strategy related to climate risks.
In Suramericana the management of these risks is carried out from the Geosciences, Trend and Risk Management and risk departments. They report to the Board’s Sustainability Committee, which oversees the strategy and issues recommendations.
In SURA AM the Board of Directors supervises and recommends through the Sustainability Committee and the management is carried out from the Sustainability, Risk and the Investment Management departments. SURA IM on the other hand, has a specialized ESG team.
In addition, the three companies have instances of dialogue where good practices are shared, such as the Sustainability Technical Working Group and the Responsible Investment Working Group.
Metrics
The carbon footprint of the SURA Business Group’s companies (in tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent: ton CO2e) is monitored to guide management towards reducing the intensity of the use of resources to carry out day-to-day operations.
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