Prizes and awards
In 2018 the PKO Bank Polski SA Group received many prizes and awards, the most important of which are:
2018
| DYNAMIC DEVELOPMENT AND EXCELLENT FINANCIAL RESULTS | |
| Business Award of the President of the Republic of Poland | PKO Bank Polski SA was the winner of the 16th run of the Business Award of the President of the Republic of Poland in the Responsible Business category. It was also nominated in the National Success category. It was recognized for its sustainable development, business successes, impact on the development of the industry and economy, and pro-social activities.
The Business Award of the President of the Republic of Poland is granted to those companies which, inter alia, contribute to the development of the national economy, promote a positive image of Poland and are a model for other businesses. |
| Best Bank 2018 | PKO Bank Polski SA won the award in the large commercial bank category in the 26th Best Bank competition held by Gazeta Bankowa. The results of operations for 2017 were recognized – PKO Bank Polski SA generated the highest net profit in the banking sector, which amounted to PLN 3.1 billion and was 8% higher than the year before. And the recurring net profit rose by as much as 28%.
The experts assessed the banks mainly in terms of growth ratios, portfolio structure and business effectiveness. Moreover, the company was evaluated by a jury which awarded the highest number of points to the Bank. |
| Business award of the Polish Radio | PKO Bank Polski SA won in the second run of the Business Awards of the Polish Radio in the Polish Philanthropist category. It was appreciated for its commitment to the economic growth of our country. For years, the Bank has been initiating and implementing social projects combining business objectives with initiatives for all stakeholder groups. It is involved in initiatives which promote economic patriotism, Polish business and science. It supports educational, civic, cultural, sports and charity events and projects.
The Business Awards of the Polish Radio recognize the best companies which significantly contribute to the growth of the Polish economy and to the promotion of Poland internationally, engage in charitable, social and ecological activities. |
| IKO is the Best Application in the World | The IKO mobile application was ranked first in the ranking of banking applications of the British financial monthly Retail Banker International. Only PKO Bank Polski SA qualified for the ranking from Poland and its mobile application IKO won first place in the world and received an overall rating of 4.8/5 based on ratings from 150 thousand people. IKO outperformed the solutions of global banking giants such as Bank of America, UBS, Lloyds and Barclays.
The ranking includes mobile applications of the 100 largest banks in the world. They were ranked based on the average ratings of users of smartphones with Android and iOS systems. |
| CEE Capital Markets & Fintech Awards | PKO Bank Polski SA won as many as three awards in the international CEE Capital Markets & Fintech Awards competition. The „Let’s Fintech with PKO Bank Polski!” acceleration programmed turned out to be the best in the Institutional Innovator category. ZenCard technology was awarded in the Fintech Innovation of the Year category, and Dom Maklerski PKO Bank Polski SA won the award for the highest value of acquired transactions.
The purpose of the CEE Capital Markets & Fintech Awards is to draw the attention of global investors to the dynamically developing companies, economy and innovations of the CEE region. The competition was initiated by CEE Business Media sp. z o.o. |
| FinTech & InsurTech Awards | The Trudatum platform, developed together by PKO Bank Polski SA and Coinfirm start-up, won the FinTech & InsurTech Awards in the blockchain technology category.
The purpose of the competition is to promote innovative technological solutions for the financial and insurance industries. |
| Highest-Valued Financial Brand | PKO Bank Polski SA is the highest-valued brand in the finance industry in Poland. The Bank’s brand was valued at PLN 2.7 billion in the 14th Highest-Valued Polish Brands 2017 ranking of the Rzeczpospolita daily. The Bank is also the third highest-valued brand in Poland.
For many years now, PKO Bank Polski SA has been the highest-valued brand on the domestic financial market and it is one of the most expensive and best known brands in Poland. Its value has more than doubled since the first edition of Rzeczpospolita’s ranking. |
| Golden Banker | In the 9th Golden Banker ranking PKO Bank Polski SA won the statuette in the mortgage loan category for the “Własny Kąt Hipoteczny” home loan – for the low cost of financing, availability, and flexible approach to early repayment. The experts also praised Mini Ratka (Mini-payment), notable for its payment holiday, the Bank’s hotline for the expertise and good manners of the consultants, and ergonomic electronic channels. Whereas, Internet users praised the Bank’s social media efforts, the “Kluczowe decyzje” (Key decisions) commercial, and the PKO Charity Run social initiative.
The Golden Banker is the largest ranking of banks’ customer service, quality of products, advertising and social media communications, social involvement, most innovative products and services on the banking market. It identifies those banks which, in their operations, choose the best market practices, and their products and services meet the expectations and needs of their Customers. The ranking is organized by Bankier.pl and Puls Biznesu. |
| PKO BANK POLSKI SA – LEADER AMONG EMPLOYERS | |
| Employer of the Year | PKO Bank Polski SA was one of the most sought-after employers in the Employer of the Year 2017 ranking of the international student organization AIESEC. The Bank has a strong position as the best employer in the financial sector and is regularly present on the Top 10 list in the AIESEC ranking.
The ranking is based on a survey conducted among 4th and 5th year students of economics from the largest academic centres in Poland. Its purpose is to analyse student preferences regarding the choice of a future employer, but also to evaluate the prospects on the labour market for the student community. |
| Attractive Employer in Poland – UNIVERSUM 2018 | Once again PKO Bank Polski SA was recognized by students. In the prestigious ranking of employers: Universum Student Survey, in the following categories: business and law, the Bank was among the best employers in Poland. Students rated the Bank highly for technological innovation, a generous package of benefits for employees, and ethical actions.
The annual Universum Talent Survey is one of the largest in the world. It is about professional preferences and goals, career and the industry in which respondents would like to work. This year’s Polish edition attracted over 17.5 thousand students from 71 Polish universities. They rated employers in the following areas: business, engineering, IT, humanities, sciences, law, health and medicine. |
| ACTIONS AWARDED IN THE AREA OF CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY (CSR) | |
| CSR Diamond | PKO Bank Polski S.A. was recognized for its social involvement and implementation of sustainable development projects. It received a special award, CSR Diamond, in the 6th run of the Responsible Business Awards competition.
The prize is awarded by the Executive Club. Its purpose is to highlight the importance of involvement of Polish businesses in the implementation and promotion of the idea of sustainable and responsible business. |
| PKO Bank Polski SA was awarded the title of an Ethical Company | PKO Bank Polski SA was awarded in the fourth Ethical Company competition for its practices concerning fair and transparent business in compliance with ethical and social responsibility standards.
The competition is organized by Puls Biznesu, with the technical support from PwC Polska, which supervises the audit of participants’ processes and procedures. The award is granted to companies which comprehensively and systemically create and strengthen their organizational culture. |
| EXCELLENT COMMUNICATION WITH THE MARKET | |
| Online Communication Leader | PKO Bank Polski SA received the highest rating and won the Online Communication Leader ranking (in the category of large public companies) in the eleventh Issuer’s Golden Website competition held by the Polish Association of Stock Exchange Issuers.
What was analysed was communication with investors, among others through social media, electronic mail or other channels and tools, as well as presentations of results of operations and current operations of the companies to investors. The jury of the contest also paid attention to the content of investor websites, their appearance and ease of navigation. |
| Transparent Company of the Year | PKO Bank Polski SA was awarded the title of Transparent Company of the Year 2017 from the WIG 20 index in the second ranking of communication of public companies with the market. What was appreciated was its financial and other reporting, investor relations and the corporate governance principles applied.
The ranking prepared by Instytut Rachunkowości i Podatków (Institute of Accounting and Taxation) and Gazeta Giełdy Parkiet is based on a survey. The initiative is intended for public companies from the WIG 20, 40 and 80 indices. Its purpose is to assess the transparency of companies. |
| BEST SPECIALISTS IN THE MARKET |
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| Digital Shapers | Zbigniew Jagiełło, President of the Management Board of PKO Bank Polski SA, received an award in the category of Digital Transformation in the first run of the Digital Shapers competition. He was appreciated for his participation in changes in the banking sector and development of the society’s digital competence, and entered in the list of prominent personalities of the digital world.
Digital Shapers is an initiative of Digital Poland Foundation, whose aim is to honour outstanding personalities of the digital world and new technologies, who are a model and inspiration for the whole business. |
| Most Effective President 2017 | Zbigniew Jagiełło, President of the Management Board of PKO Bank Polski SA, as the only President of a financial institution, was awarded the WIG20 Most Effective President of 2017 statuette. His high position in the ranking was due to the Bank’s performance, in the first instance the increase in capitalization in 2017, the rate of return for shareholders, excellent financial ratios and the company’s transparency
The ranking of the Most Effective Presidents 2017 was prepared by the editors of Harvard Business Review Polska in partnership with the Asset Management Department of DM TMS Brokers and the Association of Individual Investors. |
| Leader in the digitization of the banking sector | Adam Marciniak, Vice-President of the Management Board of PKO Bank Polski SA, in charge of the IT area, was presented with an award for the Leader in Digitization of the Banking Sector 2018. The jury recognized Adam Marciniak for his involvement in the development of innovative tools, achievements and projects implemented within the PKO Bank Polski SA Group, as well as for the entire banking sector. The multi-award-winning IKO and iPKO Biznes applications, cooperation with the Ministry of Digitization, Central Information Technology Centre, and development of services for the eGovernment, were noticed.
The award was introduced by the members of the Banking Technology Forum as a distinction for outstanding achievements intended to connect the banking and technology sectors in Poland. |