NATIXIS_REGISTRATION_DOCUMENT_2017

6 ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY Business line contributions to green and sustainable growth

ratingson issuer ESG commitments; a definition of investment themes and a selective investment a approach; transparency:Natixis Assurances transparentlycommunicates a and reports on changes in the carbon footprint of its investments. Engagement by the Natixis Private Equity business line Throughits six asset managementcompanies,Natixis providesa comprehensiverange of productsand servicesacrossthe Private Equity businessworldwide.Three of these companiesspecialize in direct investmentin unlistedcompanies:NaxicapPartnersand Alliance Entreprendre (growth capital and leveraged buyouts in France and in Europe),and SeventurePartners(venturecapital in France). Three companies offer advisory and investment management services: Euro-Private Equity in Europe, Caspian Private Equity in the United States and Eagle Asia Management in Asia. Since 2015, Euro Private Equity and Naxicap Partners have been signatoriesof the Principlesfor ResponsibleInvestment(PRI). In additionto the PRI, NaxicapPartnersmade a commitmentto the IC20 (2020 Carbon Initiative) to contribute to the COP21 goal of limitingglobal warmingto two degrees.The aim is to reduce the greenhousegas emissionsof its investmentsand to publish the direct and indirect carbon footprint of companies held in its portfoliosby 2020. Green bonds raise funds earmarked for environmental and/or social projects. Since 2013 we have seen exponentialgrowth in this market, backed by internationalclimate agreementsand the concerted efforts of governments and the private sector: total issue volumes increased from $36 billion in 2014 to over $140 billionin 2016. With this strong increase has come a more diversified range of issuers (public entities, banks, private entities) and formats (senior non-preferred,hybrids, etc.) and more participationfrom outside France, particularlywith the arrival of India and of China (China accounted for over half of green bond issues in 2016). 2017 saw a strong movement towards market standardization, with a rise in the listing segments on international exchanges and the publicationof guidelinesby variousregulators. Major institutional investors are now looking to invest in the segmentin accordancewith increasinglyrigorousgovernancefor such issues.

Euro Private Equity established a responsible investment policy outlining its commitments as an asset management company, including its due diligence, post-investment and reporting commitments. It works in partnership with Mirova, an affiliate of Natixis Investment Managers, to help it integrate ESG criteria into its investment policy. For Euro Private Equity, Mirova played an advisory role in the drafting of its ESG charter and development of an assessment grid to check the ESG commitment of the relevantportfoliomanagers. Naxicap Partners has implementedan ambitiousESG integration policy and formally established an ESG charter including criteria for excluding certain industries and activities. It put together a four-person ESG team: a Head of ESG focused exclusively on this function was hired, two members of the Investor Relations team devote part of their time to ESG, and one member of the ManagementBoard coordinatesthe team'sactivity. Naxicap Partners’ official ESG policy details the steps that must be followed in the investment process, which are strictly monitored by the Middle Office, including: the obligation to conduct a pre-investmentESG analysis, the performance of an ESG audit by external specialists,the inclusionof an ESG clause in the shareholders’agreement,the preparationof an action plan discussed by company Supervisory Boards, and a seller's ESG audit when the investment is sold. Each company's ESG performance is monitored, based in particular on annual data collection on specific indicators.A report published once a year, available online, summarizes and analyses the data, while highlightinginterestinginitiativesand pointsof improvement. Natixis is an active member of the Green Bond Principles initiativeand severalof its businesslines are activelyparticipating in this impressivemarketgrowth: Natixis’ Corporate & Investment Banking division facilitated several green bond issues in 2017, in both the private and public sector: Agence France Trésor, ENEL, CDC, SNCF Réseau, CTG, DBS, Engie,EIB, AFD, Mizuho,etc. Mirova, also a signatory of the Green Bond Principles, has implementeda specific global green bond strategy and manages €1.2 billion in green bonds through its various funds and mandates. Lastly, the Natixis and Mirova Green & Sustainable research teams have developed special expertise in Green Bonds and publisheda seriesof studiesin the field.

SUPPORT FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF GREEN BONDS 6.2.3

2017 Key Event Green Bond CMBS in New York

The NY Corporate & Investment Banking branch arranged the first Green Bond CMBS (Commercial Mortage Backed Security), using the LEED Platinum environmental certification on a recently renovated Wall Street building to obtain green certification from German research firm Oekom. As a result, it was able to issue a $72 million green-specific tranche out of a total issue of $300 million.

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Natixis Registration Document 2017