Three "Green Banks" from Denmark, Norway and Sweden Wednesday won the Nordic Council Environment Prize at the ongoing three-day Nordic Council of Ministers meeting in Reykjavik, according to a statement reaching here from the capital of Iceland.

The prize winners are Ekobanken from Sweden, Cultura Bank from Norway and Merkur Andelskasse from Denmark.

"They won the prizes to show that the banking industry's core business is not shareholder returns, but the greatest possible benefit for society as a whole," the statement said.

The theme for the Nordic Council Nature and Environment Prize 2010 was "green asset management."

"Money should be used to build and create community," said one of the prize winners, Lars Hektoen from Cultura Bank in Norway.

"In our credit business, we work with full transparency and we always ask our clients what kind of added value is most important for them. It may be from an ecological, a social or a cultural perspective. Our goal is long-term and sustainable development," Annika Lauren from Ekobanken Sweden was quoted as saying in the statement.

"It's also very much about grassroots involvement. We all have the possibility to vote with our feet, make demands as consumers and choose a bank that shows responsibility," said Lars Pehrson from Danish bank.

The three prize winners have decided to donate a third of the prize to activities that will promote sustainable and socially responsible banking in Iceland.

They think the banks should resume their traditional role in supporting community development instead of earning quick money through speculations and raising expectations only.

The Nordic Council Nature and Environment Prize was established in 1995 and is awarded on an equal footing with the prizes for literature, film and music.