Aflac celebrates sweet 16 on Ethisphere's World's Most Ethical Companies list

Company remains only insurer in the world recognized every year since program's inception

COLUMBUS, Ga., March 15, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- For the 16th year in a row, Ethisphere recognized Aflac Incorporated as one of the World's Most Ethical Companies. A leader in supplemental insurance, the Fortune 500 company is the only insurer around the globe to make the prestigious list since the recognition program began in 2007. This year's list includes 135 honorees across 22 countries and 45 industries that demonstrate unwavering commitment to business integrity through company culture, transparency and integrity, according to Ethisphere.

"Since our founding in 1955, Aflac continues to be a purpose-driven company that focuses on treating our policyholders, investors, employees and communities with respect and care," said Aflac Incorporated Chairman and CEO Dan Amos. "We are grateful and honored to be recognized by Ethisphere, a standard bearer for corporate ethics, as one of the World's Most Ethical Companies. Making this list for 16 consecutive years is a remarkable achievement that illustrates how Aflac is committed to conducting business the right way for the long term."

Known for award-winning corporate social responsibility — including having received the 2021 U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation's Corporate Steward Award — and a robust environmental, social and governance (ESG) program, Aflac, its employees and its independent sales agents have contributed nearly $158 million to support children facing cancer and sickle cell disease. The company recently expanded its program of giving My Special Aflac Duck^® — a robotic companion initially designed to comfort kids with cancer — to help support kids with sickle cell disease. Earlier this year, Aflac launched a national initiative, Close the Gap, to address medical debt and disparities in health and wealth in America.

"Now more than ever, it's imperative for businesses to be difference-makers in today's environment while balancing purpose and profit," said Aflac Incorporated President and Chief Operating Officer Fred Crawford. "We understand our investors, policyholders and consumers are rightfully concerned with company ethics and values, which impacts financial performance. Being named one of Ethisphere's World's Most Ethical Companies is an impressive honor, further solidifying our strategy to build shareholder value by continuing to do the right thing."

Aflac's commitment to purpose extends to how the company invests. To that end, Aflac Global Investments made significant moves designed to help economically distressed communities and develop sustainable infrastructure as part of the company's commitment to responsible investments. In 2021, Aflac Incorporated issued a $400 million sustainability bond targeting projects that provide environmental or social benefits.

The World's Most Ethical Companies application process benchmarks programs against others of similar industry, size and structure. During the assessment, there are more than 200 questions on culture, environmental and social practices, ethics and compliance activities, governance, diversity, and initiatives to support a strong value chain. The method serves as an operating basis to capture and codify the leading practices of organizations across industries and around the world. 

"Today, business leaders face their greatest mandate yet to be ethical, accountable and trusted to drive positive change," said Ethisphere CEO Timothy Erblich. "We continue to be inspired by the World's Most Ethical Companies honorees and their dedication to integrity, sustainability, governance and community. Congratulations to Aflac for earning the World's Most Ethical Companies designation."

Learn more about Aflac Incorporated's sustainability and ESG efforts at investors.aflac.com/sustainability. To see the full list of the 2022 World's Most Ethical Companies, visit worldsmostethicalcompanies.com/honorees.

About Aflac Incorporated

Aflac Incorporated (NYSE: AFL) is a Fortune 500 company helping provide protection to more than 50 million people through its subsidiaries in Japan and the U.S., where it is a leading supplemental insurer by paying cash fast when policyholders get sick or injured. For more than six decades, insurance policies of Aflac Incorporated's subsidiaries have given policyholders the opportunity to focus on recovery, not financial stress. Aflac Life Insurance Japan is the leading provider of medical and cancer insurance in Japan where it insures 1 in 4 households. For 16 consecutive years, Ethisphere has recognized Aflac Incorporated as one of the World's Most Ethical Companies. In 2022, Fortune included Aflac Incorporated on its list of World's Most Admired Companies for the 21st time, and Bloomberg added Aflac Incorporated to its Gender-Equality Index, which tracks the financial performance of public companies committed to supporting gender equality through policy development, representation and transparency, for the second consecutive year. To find out how to get help with expenses health insurance doesn't cover, get to know us at aflac.com.

About Ethisphere

Ethisphere® is the global leader in defining and advancing the standards of ethical business practices that fuel corporate character, marketplace trust and business success. Ethisphere has deep expertise in measuring and defining core ethics standards using data-driven insights that help companies enhance corporate character and measure and improve culture. Ethisphere honors superior achievement through its World's Most Ethical Companies recognition program and provides a community of industry experts with the Business Ethics Leadership Alliance (BELA). More information about Ethisphere can be found at: https://ethisphere.com.

Media contact: Jon Sullivan, 706.573.7610 or jsullivan@aflac.com 
Analyst and investor contact: David A. Young, 706.596.3264 or dyoung@aflac.com

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SOURCE Aflac