Code of Conduct

Integrity, Respect, Courage

We make the business world more transparent in terms of credit risk.

We work with integrity and respect for people and nature on innovative solutions for our stakeholders.

It is the foundation of our capitalistic society to maximize the macroeconomic output under fair competition. This output is not only driven by companies maximizing profits, but also by minimizing costs for governments and societies. This has a positive effect on tax rates and reduces inefficiencies. This is why we comply with these rules and values, in order to meet these goals and keeping diversification.

Major corner stones of these rules and values are:

• Respect and fairness also in a competitive environment (competition should not destroy)
• Willingness for discourse instead of positioning (challenging yourself)
• Limiting partial interest by being respectful to the common welfare (e.g. blackmailing of subsidies through potentially moving location or headquarters to a tax haven)
• Self-limitation in growth (Quality over quantity)
• Creativity with responsibility (e.g. risks, adverse effects)
• Disclaiming the right of the stronger one (own expansion interests should not be at the expense of other stakeholders)

Unlike the cultural compatibility, the social compatibility is focusing less on the business – cultural environment, but rather on our behavior towards humans in a social and economic manner, which Emerald Rating commits to.

Main aspects are working conditions, social standards and human rights. In this context we positively influence following aspects:

• Leadership principles, group oriented hierarchies and organizations
• Work council, employee participation (trade unions, labor relations, participation at work place, suggestion system)
• Working time regulations and job security
• Work climate, bullying, humanization of work conditions
• Principles for hiring and firing
• Wage system, performance payments, participation in profits
• Health, human resources development, social services
• Internal stakeholders (older employees, semiskilled workers, foreign workers, trainees, disabled workers, women, freelancer, low wages employees, teenagers, children, sick employees, permanently unemployed persons, temporary employees)
• Special products, obsolescence

It is very important to adopt ecological compatibility. Natural resources are limited and will be even more limited as the world population increases. This is why it is essential for companies’ survival, to understand how much the environment is burdened along the entire life cycle. These ecological considerations are included in our investment decision making from the beginning. We do not rely on society to contend with our ecological footprint, and generate costs which society has to carry. This conduct eludes to the principle of causation.

We comply with Swiss law, competition laws in the European Union, European data privacy law, the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), the UK Bribery Act, the UN Convention against Corruption, the OECD Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Government Officials and all applicable local anti-corruption laws.