On the latest episode the ABA Banking Journal Podcast — sponsored by S&P Global Market Intelligence — Berkshire Bank President and CEO Nitin Mhatre discusss Berkshire Bank’s “BEST Community Comeback,” a new $5 billion ESG-focused initiative at the Massachusetts-based midsize community bank. “We may not have called it ESG or DEI-type initiatives in the past, but we’ve always done it,” says Mhatre. “It’s really just taking the things we’ve done in the past and translating that into what makes an impact.”

Among other topics, Mhatre discusses:

• Berkshire’s goal of 200,000 “socially responsible” accounts, including Bank On-certified accounts.
• Why Berkshire no longer finances fossil fuel production, and how it will make future decisions about financing downstream energy businesses and other sectors affected by climate change.
• How investors have responded to Berkshire’s ESG-related activities.
• The perspective Mhatre brought to Berkshire after a career at larger institutions like Citi and Webster Bank.

This episode is sponsored by S&P Global Market Intelligence.