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As ethical banks have developed from niche players to a serious competition for traditional banks, supposedly ethical banks and even traditional banks use the term ethical bank in order to sell bank services under the cloak of sustainable and ethically correct business conduct.Therefore, the aim of this research is to make truly ethical banks distinguishable from traditional banks by investigating, analyzing and determining principles, ethical banks have to fulfill or refrain from in order to call themselves truly ethical. Based on academic research results, a web-based survey identifies the bank customers attitude towards sustainability, ethics, and their banking, and the ethical attitude towards the nine areas of business, banks may be confronted with. The survey results build the basis for a list of positive and negative ethical guiding principles which should serve as a general standard for ethical banks.Nevertheless, the ethical guiding principles need to be continuously reviewed and validated as a consequence of the ever-changing environmental, social and legal environment. In the case of its direct implementation, a control mechanism within or outside the bank must monitor and ensure compliance with these principles.

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After the completion of her apprenticeship as a Qualified Bank Officer, Hedwig Franziska Heerdt has obtained a Bachelor of Arts in International Management from the International School of Management in Dortmund. After gaining academical and professional experience in the UK, China and Mexico, she obtained a Masters degree in International Finance from the University of Westminster in London. Her background in the financial service sector and her personal interest in ethics and sustainability motivated her to write this book. Today, she is working in the field of finance at a leading global logistics provider.

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