Preparing Great Southern Bank for ASRS and Climate-Related Financial Disclosures

The Situation

Great Southern Bank, one of Australia’s largest customer-owned banks, serves over 380,000 Australians. As it grows, the bank has committed to reducing its environmental impact, acknowledging its role in creating a sustainable future. Since achieving Climate Active certification in 2021, the bank has worked with Anthesis to measure, reduce, and offset operational emissions. However, the challenge of measuring “financed emissions” from its lending and investment portfolios required deeper analysis and alignment with new legislation, such as the mandatory climate-related financial disclosures to the Australian Sustainability Reporting Standards (ASRS).

Our Solutions

Anthesis supported Great Southern Bank with a gap analysis and roadmap to meet ASRS requirements. This included a detailed opportunity assessment and updating the Bank’s Climate Transition Plan in line with ASRS and the UK Transition Plan Taskforce framework. Using PCAF guidance, Anthesis assessed the Bank’s portfolio emissions across lending and investment activities, including mortgages, corporate bonds, and business loans. Additional support was provided to enhance the Bank’s TCFD statement with science-based targets validated by SBTi, while also offering insight into disclosure gaps and strategies to close them.

Impacts of the Project

Great Southern Bank became the first customer-owned bank in Australia to publish a TCFD statement, leading the sector in environmental disclosure. Enhanced insights into carbon intensity per asset class and sector enabled the Bank to guide strategic decision-making on risk management and product development. By partnering with Anthesis, the Bank continues to align with ASRS and advance its sustainability commitments, including setting validated science-based targets and developing strategies to reduce financed emissions.