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COP26: Which banks are still funding fossil fuels?

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London, UK
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In an age of greenwashing and disingenuous sustainability marketing, which banks are genuinely helping out against climate change and which are still funding fossil fuels?

Well, we’re finally here – COP26 is underway in Glasgow as world leaders discuss climate change initiatives and pledge big money to curb emissions over the next ten years.

The UK government has announced today that hundreds of the world’s biggest banks and pension funds will be getting involved, with assets worth over $130 trillion USD between 450 institutions.

While this is good news and a step in the right direction, experts have been quick to note that banks have been given no cap or restrictions on pumping money into fossil fuels, which they continue to do on a huge scale. Since 2015, over $3.8 trillion USD has been given to the coal, oil, and gas industries by sixty of the world’s biggest banks.

If you’re surprised by those numbers then you’ve likely been duped by greenwashing campaigns that emphasise ‘sustainability’ initiatives while omitting any information on fossil fuel funding. Shell is a company that’s especially guilty of this with its recent ‘clean driving’ campaigns, but such tactics to dupe consumers cross over to banks as well.


Who are the big offenders?

Let’s start locally in the UK, since COP26 is taking place in Glasgow. The UK’s five biggest banks, including Barclays, HSBC, NatWest, Lloyds Banking Group, and Standard Chartered, invested close to £40.4 billion into coal between 2018 and 2020 alone.

Barclays made up over half of that total, and has pumped more than £145 billion into companies that have plans to expand their use of fossil fuels since 2015.

HSBC, meanwhile, put nearly £11 billion into coal companies between 2018 and 2020, with direct investment in Bangladesh’s coal infrastructure. Since 2015 it has spent $110 billion USD on fossil fuels. To put the greenwashing problem into perspective, here is HSBC’s 2021 advert for ‘climate change doesn’t do borders’ – neither does coal expansion, apparently.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GpxSE6L6p-k&ab_channel=HSBCUK

Lloyds Bank is a big offender too. In the five years since the Paris Agreement, the UK branch alone has dumped $12 billion USD into fossil fuels despite pledging to cut financed emissions by at least 50% by 2030. In 2020 it co-financed $2.4 billion USD for fossil fuels.

It doesn’t stop there. According to Bank Track, Santander has provided $34 billion USD to the fossil fuel industry since the signing of the Paris Agreement, raising its contribution from $5.1 billion USD in 2018 to $9 billion USD in 2019.

All this while at the same time releasing climate change videos on being ‘net zero’. From a consumer perspective it is confusing and misleading.

If we’re talking big numbers, the absolute worst offender of them all is JPMorgan Chase, which has put an eye-watering $316.74 billion USD into fossil fuels since the Paris Agreement. It has a ‘sustainability initiative’ on its website with a promise to reduce its funding commitments, but for now it is doing the devil’s work.

CITI bank comes in second with $237.48 billion USD spent since 2015. Wells Fargo is in third with $223.35 billion USD and Bank Of America follows in fourth with $198.45 billion USD spent. For the full graph of information, visit the Fossil Banks website here.


Which banks are making a genuine effort?

With all the doom and gloom covered, are there any banks that are actually walking the walk and helping out with the climate crisis?

If you’re looking to switch and ensure your money isn’t being pumped into oil firms the world over, where should you turn? Right now it’s mostly a case of picking the lesser option of many evils, but there are some banks that are objectively better than others.

If you live in the UK, a good bet is choosing more modern, digital-only banks like Monzo. Others that have been listed as greener picks are Charity Bank, Triodos Bank, the Co-Op Bank, Handelsbanken, TSB, and the Ecology Building Society.

Although not directly related to climate change, some of the top banks have been linked to potential tax avoidance schemes and offshore accounting, Santander being one. The above mentioned banks are also a relatively safe bet that your money will be used ethically. The less creepy millionaires you help out the better, eh?

Hopefully COP26 will be the necessary shake-up to get banks on board properly with climate crisis prevention. Progress has been too slow until now. Many banks – HSBC, Lloyds, Santander – are more than willing to pump out climate campaigns without meaningfully slashing fossil fuel funding.

This must change in the next ten years. All eyes are on those big offenders, at least for now. It’s time to get your act together JPMorgan Chase.

Editor In Chief London, UK

I’m Charlie (He/Him), the Editor In Chief at Thred. I studied English at the University of Birmingham and as a music and gaming enthusiast, I’m a nerd for pop culture. You can find me curating playlists, designing article headline images, and sipping cider on a Thursday. Follow me on Twitter, LinkedIn and drop me some ideas/feedback via email.

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