Responsible purchasing process

Pekao Group and the Bank treat their counterparties with due respect and select suppliers of goods and services objectively and impartially, thus ensuring good and fair business relations. When selecting suppliers, the Pekao Group and the Bank apply internal procedures in line with the best practices and the mandatory provisions of Polish law. Pekao Group builds long-term relationships with suppliers based on mutual trust, respect and professionalism. In particular, suppliers who apply proven market practices and represent the highest level of professional ethics are appreciated.

The course of purchasing processes is defined by three key regulations in force since 2018: Purchasing policy at Bank Polska Kasa Opieki Spółka Akcyjna; Principles for the execution of purchases by the Purchasing Department at Bank Polska Kasa Opieki Spółka Akcyjna and The rules for the execution of purchases without the participation of the Purchasing Department at Bank Polska Kasa Opieki Spółka Akcyjna. The rules were revised again in 2019 and 2020 following the further transformation of the Bank’s purchasing function. Another improvement step initiated in 2019 was the full digitalization of the procurement processes and the communication carried out with bidders at the stage of procurement proceedings and orders placed. The result of the work done so far on the digitalization of purchasing processes is the implementation of the Integrated Purchasing Tool. The new system was followed by an update of the Bank’s purchasing procedure.

The companies invited to participate in the procedure may ask questions regarding the submitted specification. Information on the outcome of a given procedure is sent to all participating bidders. In order to ensure impartial selection of suppliers of goods and services, committees are appointed to ensure the transparency of the supplier selection process and to approve the recommendations of the most advantageous offer.

In accordance with the accepted principles applied in awarding contracts, the Bank uses the electronic method of conducting negotiations in a significant part of proceedings, which definitely facilitates conducting proceedings of national and international range. The advantage of using such a solution is high efficiency and transparency of the negotiation process.

In addition, when conducting tenders, the Bank verifies potential bidders in terms of the risk of corruption and in terms of sanction lists (US and EU sanction lists) and public warnings of the Polish Financial Supervision Authority. Companies that execute orders for the Bank are informed of the violation process adopted and the relevant provisions of the Bank’s anticorruption policy.

When the Bank conducts tenders (with the net value exceeding PLN 1 million), suppliers are required to fill out a „Corporate Social and Environmental Responsibility (CSR) Form”. In this way, Bank Pekao undertakes actions for sustainable development, environmental protection and preventing human rights violations by the Bank’s business partners. The form contains questions about the incorporation of environmental protection regulations and respect for human rights in the daily activities of the supplier or contractor. The scope of issues on the form includes:

The percentage of procedures carried out with suppliers selected in terms of meeting environmental and social criteria in 2021 amounted to approx. 20%.