Triodos Bank UK has won the Sustainability Champion of the Year category at the Commercial Lender Awards 2025 for its leading role in advancing sustainability within commercial finance.
The Awards are open to patrons and partners of the National Association of Commercial Finance Brokers (NACFB), with entries shortlisted by a judging panel and winners chosen through a combination of votes by the NACFB’s broker community and the judges’ scores. This year’s winners were announced at a ceremony on 27 November 2025.
New for this year, the Sustainability Champion of the Year Award recognises organisations that champion green initiatives, embed sustainable practices across their operations and support brokers in delivering funding solutions that enable positive environmental impact.
Phillip Bate, Director of Business Banking at Triodos Bank UK, said: “As a bank with environmental responsibility embedded into our ethos, we’re proud to have been named the first Sustainability Champion of the Year by the NACFB and its members. We would also like to commend the NACFB for introducing this important category, as more and more SMEs prioritise having a positive environmental impact.”
Triodos Bank’s recent lending has included a tailored loan following a broker referral to sustainable care provider, Sunlite London, including a capital deferral to enable solar installation.
The bank’s work this year has also included a new £5.4m loan to enable Shawton Energy to build its first ground-mounted solar farm in Pembrokeshire, Wales. It also supports customers such as The Solar for Schools Community Benefit Society, an organisation that funds solar installations on schools, plus a project by Avon Needs Trees to create the South West’s largest new woodland in decades.
Triodos was shortlisted for Sustainability Champion of the Year alongside nine other organisations.
The largest trade association for commercial finance brokers in the UK, the NACFB has almost 1,400 members, which follow its code of practice and undergo regular minimum standards reviews.