Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Overview

Our Responsibility

At TD, our vision is to Be the Better Bank. As we have grown, adapted and prospered throughout our 165-year history, we have done so with an understanding that we can only thrive when the communities we serve thrive. And, while this has always been our journey, our progress toward this goal has never been more critical to our collective future.

Our success is not only measured by our financial performance – it’s also measured by the extent to which we do what’s right, today and in the long term. As the complex ESG landscape raises new and emerging challenges, we are continually working to embed responsible business practices across TD to build long-term value for our customers, colleagues and the communities we serve.

When it comes to the environment, many of us are concerned about the kind of world the next generation will inherit. Climate change is a complex, global issue that will continue to have a growing impact on communities, business and the economy. We believe that as a financial institution we have a role to play and want to be part of the solution. That’s why we are committed to helping create a more sustainable future for all.

Our Approach to ESG

TD Bank Group strives to enrich the lives of our customers, communities and colleagues. As part of this purpose, we believe that TD can contribute in positive ways to a more sustainable and inclusive tomorrow. Our approach to ESG leverages our business, philanthropy and people to embed our efforts across the Bank.

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In 2018, as part of our ESG focus, we launched the TD Ready Commitment to work together towards an inclusive and sustainable future and, in so doing, act as a positive change agent across our footprint by connecting, enriching and supporting the communities in which we live and work. The TD Ready Commitment accomplishes this goal by leveraging our business, philanthropy and people, across four priority areas:

Financial Security: We aspire to help people feel more confident about their financial future.
Vibrant Planet: We aspire to help improve the environment so people and economies can thrive.
Connected Communities: We aspire to help people participate in their community.
Better Health: We aspire to create more equitable health outcomes for all.

TD ESG Centre of Expertise: TD has established the TD ESG Centre of Expertise to draw on experts from across TD to participate in the global efforts needed to enable the low-carbon economy. We will bring together the experience and talent of colleagues working on these issues across the enterprise, allowing for coordinated and streamlined efforts, minimizing gaps and ensuring speed of decision making.

Environment & Climate Change: Climate change is a critical environmental and business challenge and will require significant effort over the long term to help economies transition successfully to the low-carbon future. Rising greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are changing the climate, leading to increased frequency and severity of floods, wildfires, and storms, as well as accelerated degradation of the health of the environment and its life sustaining ecosystems. The climate action plan announced on November 9, 2020, further strengthens TD's commitment to environmental leadership and a more sustainable future for all stakeholders.

Economic and Financial Inclusion: Economic inequality is increasing and is significantly exacerbated by the pandemic. Some groups have been disproportionately impacted, and growing inequities contribute more broadly to economic, social, and political uncertainty across our footprint. TD has a deep-rooted history of inclusion and is further embedding inclusive priorities in our business and services.

Our Climate Action Plan

In 2020, we announced a global climate action plan, building on our long history of environmental progress.

TD's Climate Action Plan includes the following elements:

A target to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions associated with its operations and financing activities by 2050, aligned to the associated principles of the Paris Agreement.
An industry-specific approach to prioritize and advance GHG reduction opportunities.
Intent to establish GHG emissions baselines across its business and financing portfolio, working closely with clients as it sets interim GHG reduction goals on the path towards 2050. The Bank will report on its progress starting with 2021.
Creation of a new TD Sustainable Finance and Corporate Transitions Group within TD Securities to provide clients with advisory services and important transition and sustainability-focused financing globally.
Work with the ESG Centre of Expertise to draw on experts from across TD to participate in the global efforts needed to enable the low-carbon economy, including data measurement and analytics improvements, investment in research and support for academic progress and technological innovation.

Arctic Prohibition

The Arctic Circle is a unique and fragile environment, home to protected species, and of crucial importance to the local Indigenous populations. From a climate perspective, this area is warming significantly faster than the rest of our planet, which poses the risk of increased GHG releases and further warming.

Given these facts, TD will not provide new project-specific financial services, including advisory services, for activities that are directly related to the exploration, development, or production of oil and gas within the Arctic Circle, including the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR).

Our ESG Progress

The climate action plan builds on TD's long history of progress in building an inclusive and sustainable future.

Highlights include:

The first North American-based bank to become carbon neutral.
The first Canadian bank to announce a financial target to support the transition to a low-carbon economy.
Launched the TD Ready Commitment in 2018, a platform that activates the power of TD's business, human capital and philanthropy toward a more inclusive and sustainable tomorrow.
The only bank to be engaged in all pilots of the UN Environment Programme’s Finance Initiative's Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures – investing, lending, and insurance.
A commitment to cleantech investment, including an investment in ArcTern Ventures' Fund II, one of Canada's largest clean technology venture funds.
Issued a US$500 million sustainability bond in 2020, which was the first of its kind in SOFR format. To date, TD has underwritten $21 billion, issued $2.4 billion and purchased approximately $1.3 billion in sustainable bonds.
The first in the Canadian insurance industry to announce the establishment of an Advisory Board on Climate Change.
An investment in Canada's largest battery storage project through the TD Greystone Infrastructure Fund.
The addition of two new mutual funds in 2020 to TD Asset Management Inc.'s sustainability suite (TD North American Sustainability Equity Fund and TD North American Sustainability Balanced Fund).
TD Asset Management became a signatory to the UN Principles for Responsible Investment in 2009 and was the first investment business of a major Canadian financial institution to advance its commitment to ESG integration and investment analysis.

"I commend TD Bank Group for taking a step forward to increase its ESG performance and recognize the role it can play in building pathways to sustainability and contributing to positive climate action in North America. It won't be easy, and it will require collective action, however I am confident that TD's leadership will inspire other North American corporations to tackle environmental and social challenges and to develop meaningful solutions to climate change and global sustainability." Bruce Lourie, PhD, President Ivey Foundation

"PCAF is excited that TD has joined over 80 financial institutions globally that are committed to measuring and disclosing the emissions of their portfolios to support meeting the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement. As a large North American bank, TD continues to show environmental leadership through its collaboration with PCAF." Giel Linthorst, Executive Director of the Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials Secretariat