A company of LBBW
Annual Report 2020
31 March 2021
Foreword by the Board of Management
Dear readers,
The world was turned upside down more or less without any warning in 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic arrived in Europe and disrupted our normal working routines – and everything else as well. The economy and society as a whole were severely tested in 2020, as was each and every company and individual. The economic and social impact of the pandemic have become very noticeable by now, but it’s extremely difficult to predict what the long-term effects will be.
Economic output declined dramatically in Germany as a result of the pandemic. At the same time, ongoing low-interest rates, a lack of investment alternatives, and a high level of liquidity helped keep the real estate market remarkably stable, and Berlin Hyp also benefited from this stability.
During the difficult year of 2020, the Bank once again showed just how well it can adapt to changed circumstances:
After it became apparent at the beginning of March 2020 that the virus would spread very dynamically in Germany, we transferred nearly 90% of our employees into a mobile working arrangement within just a few days. All systems and core processes at the Bank functioned perfectly from the very first day of across-the-board mobile work, and operational stability was guaranteed at all times. As it turned out, the extensive investments the Bank had made in IT infrastructure and the modernisation of core processes in previous years paid off during the pandemic.
Der Geschäftsbericht 2020
The “Key Figures at a Glance” section presents the most important key figures for 2020 with respect to “Profit and Loss Account”, “Business Development”, “Regulatory Law Key Figures”, “Issue Ratings” and “Sustainability Ratings” of Berlin Hyp – comparing in each case with the key figures of 2019.
The “Bodies of the Bank and Other Important Functions” section gives an overview of the composition of the Supervisory Board, the Board of Management and the Supervisory Board Committees of Berlin Hyp for the full year 2020. In addition, the Cover Pool Monitor and the Deputy Cover Pool Monitors shall be named.
The “The Supervisory Board Report” section provides information about the activities of the Supervisory Board and its Committees, the Supervisory Board meetings and the participation of the Supervisory Board members, as well as about personnel matters in the Board of Management and Supervisory Board in 2020. The topics “Corporate Governance Report”, “Annual Financial Statements” and “Sustainability Report” are particularly highlighted here.
The “Corporate Governance Report” section describes the activities of the Board of Management and Supervisory Board of Berlin Hyp in accordance with the requirements of the current version of the German Corporate Governance Code (GCGC). The focus here is on particular topics such as “Close Cooperation between the Board of Management and the Supervisory Board”, “Increasing the Efficiency of the Committees” and “Transparency”. The chapter concludes with Berlin Hyp’s updated 2020 “Joint compliance declaration by the Board of Management and the Supervisory Board”.
The “Management Report” section provides a detailed presentation of Berlin Hyp’s business performance, results of operations and position in 2020. This includes information on the principals of the Bank (business model, objectives and strategies, management system) and statements on possible further developments in the form of an “Opportunities, Forecast and Risk Report”.
The “Annual Financial Statements” section presents all of Berlin Hyp’s key figures for the 2020 financial year – including the annual balance sheet and a profit and loss account. The annual financial statements thus give a reliable picture of Berlin Hyp’s financial situation and success in 2020.
according to Section 264 (2) Sentence 3 and Section 289 (1) Sentence 5 of the German Commercial Code (HGB)
In the “Service” section, a list of the most important abbreviations can be found, to make reading Berlin Hyp’s Annual Report 2020 easier. In addition, there is a directory of Berlin Hyp addresses as well as contact persons at the Bank.
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