OREANDA-NEWS. BNY Mellon today announced that it is one of 26 firms recognized in the 2016 Bloomberg Financial Services Gender-Equality Index (BFGEI). The new index provides investors and organizations with standardized aggregate data across company gender statistics; employee policies; gender-conscious product offerings; and external community support and engagement.

“Diversity and inclusion – in all its dimensions – is a business imperative that sparks innovation, fuels transformation and drives sustainable financial and economic performance,” said Jyoti Chopra, Head of Global Citizenship and Sustainability, BNY Mellon. “BNY Mellon is proud to showcase our strong commitment to progressing gender-equality for our employees, clients and the communities we serve and support.”

All 26 member firms included in the Index demonstrated strong commitments to gender equality, as well as dedicated social disclosure policies and practices. In order to be considered, BNY Mellon submitted a social survey created by Bloomberg in partnership with third-party experts, including Women's World Banking, Catalyst and Working Mother Media. Those included on this year's index scored at or above 60 points, a global threshold established by Bloomberg to reflect disclosure and the achievement or adoption of best-in-class statistics and policies.

“We hope the BFGEI encourages more firms to disclose and discuss gender equality in the workplace,” said Bloomberg L.P. Chairman Peter T. Grauer. “Better support for female employees is crucial to building and developing a diverse workforce – and it’s key to remaining competitive in today’s global business environment.”

“Evidence demonstrates that gender-equality policies and practices can affect a company’s financial performance, productivity and ability to retain top talent,” said Todd Gibbons, Chief Financial Officer, BNY Mellon. Gibbons also serves as the executive sponsor of BNY Mellon’s global, award-winning women’s network, WIN. “Until now, while more and more firms are focused on addressing gender equality in the workplace, we've lacked a holistic set of data to better understand the issues facing companies, employees and clients, and to inform investors who are, increasingly, making investment decisions that align with their social and moral values.”

The BFGEI joins Bloomberg's growing suite of environmental, social and governance data, driving further value to Bloomberg clients seeking additional information when evaluating a company's reputation, value and performance. It also gives investors an important new decision-making tool by providing objective, concrete data around difficult-to-measure areas like policies and products. Both the survey and the BFGEI are voluntary and have no associated costs. Bloomberg collected the data for the BFGEI for reference purposes only and the index is not ranked. Visit Bloomberg.com for more information about the BFGEI.

The index reflects Bloomberg and BNY Mellon's dedication to increasing both data transparency and workplace equality, bringing a new level of clarity and awareness to social and governance information in the gender-equality space.

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About BNY Mellon

BNY Mellon is a global investments company dedicated to helping its clients manage and service their financial assets throughout the investment lifecycle. Whether providing financial services for institutions, corporations or individual investors, BNY Mellon delivers informed investment management and investment services in 35 countries and more than 100 markets. As of March 31, 2016, BNY Mellon had $29.1 trillion in assets under custody and/or administration, and $1.6 trillion in assets under management. BNY Mellon can act as a single point of contact for clients looking to create, trade, hold, manage, service, distribute or restructure investments. BNY Mellon is the corporate brand of The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation (NYSE: BK).