Equifax® continues to further its commitment to Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) priorities and has issued its annual ESG letter to shareholders and stakeholders and made new disclosures available on Equifax.com. These disclosures, which include the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) report, the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) report, Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO-1) report, the 2021 Equifax Security Annual Report, and financial inclusion initiatives, illustrate the company’s strong momentum across its ESG priorities, including continued leadership in security, driving greater workforce diversity, reducing environmental impact and increasing financial inclusion.

“We are a New Equifax – a global, diversified data, analytics, and technology company that has expanded well beyond a traditional consumer credit bureau. Through our unique combination of differentiated data assets, innovative analytics and industry leading technology, we play a critical role in the global economy and in the lives of individual consumers each day,” said Mark W. Begor, CEO of Equifax. “As part of our commitment to creating a more inclusive global economy, we are making a strong investment in ESG priorities in a way that is aligned with our company purpose – to help people live their financial best. This purpose drives our 13,000 global employees every day.”

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Equifax recognizes that data, analytics and technology is a powerful force in addressing pressing issues facing the world around us. Last year, the company accelerated its commitment to ESG priorities, announcing an important sustainability commitment to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2040 enabled by the Equifax Cloud™. In 2021, Equifax made significant progress against its ESG priorities – all of which are integrated into the company’s core business strategy. The measurable, positive ESG outcomes seen by Equifax over the last year are outlined in an open letter from CEO Mark W. Begor and include:

Continued Leadership In Security

Equifax launched its inaugural Security Annual Report in 2021, detailing the steps the company has taken toward embedding security across its enterprise – from technology infrastructure, data fabric, and product development, to mergers and acquisition strategies and employee training. Now in its second year, the latest Security Annual Report highlights Equifax’s significant advances in several key areas, including cloud security, digital supply chain security, employee security training, and global risk management. Because of these efforts and beyond, the company’s security maturity and posture today exceed every major industry benchmark as measured by independent third parties.

Driving Greater Workforce Diversity

In 2021, 77% of the Equifax senior leadership team (defined as direct reports of the CEO and certain other key executives) reflected gender, racial or ethnic diversity; 38% of the senior leadership team identified as female; and women comprised 44% of the Equifax global workforce. During that same time, 41% of Equifax U.S. employees identified with diverse racial and ethnic groups. Equifax shares diversity data and details regarding its inclusion and diversity initiatives through annual EEO-1 and SASB reports and discussion on its ESG website.

Reducing Environmental Impact

Equifax’s initial TCFD report provides transparency into the company’s environmental sustainability practices. It shows that Equifax’s combined scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions have decreased each year since 2019, with an approximate 13.5% decrease between 2019 and 2021 and an approximate 3% decrease between 2020 and 2021. The move to the Equifax Cloud is expected to propel the company on its journey to net-zero by significantly reducing the footprint of onsite technology and data centers, leveraging the enhanced energy efficiency of cloud service providers.

Increasing Financial Inclusion

Equifax strives to create and empower economically healthy individuals and communities everywhere the company does business. In 2021, Equifax delivered two big “firsts” – announcing the availability of the industry’s first and only U.S. credit report in Spanish, as well as being the first to include Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) tradelines in its U.S. consumer credit files. Most recently, Equifax, in a joint measure with its industry peers, announced significant changes to medical collection debt reporting in an effort to better support consumers facing unexpected medical bills. 

“We are energized by the significant progress made by Equifax in 2021, but we recognize that there is more to do,” continued Begor. “We are committed to transparency in our ESG journey and will keep sharing our progress along the way. It is our hope that our focus on ESG will serve as an example for other financial institutions, as we continue to show how we are better positioning Equifax for long-term sustainability, and, in turn, building shareholder value.”

Source: Equifax