"WASHINGTON - Despite pressure from activists, investors and governments, the majority of world’s 50 largest banks have not made sustainable finance commitments to respond to the risks of climate change and continue to finance fossil fuels, according to new findings by the World Resources Institute released on Thursday.
Washington-based WRI unveiled its new Green Target Tool, which analyzes and compares the world’s 50 largest private banks’ public commitments to address climate and found that as of July, only 23 of the world’s 50 largest private banks made commitments to finance projects for sustainable energy.
Among those 23 banks with commitments, the average annual level of fossil fuel finance between 2016 and 2018 is nearly twice the annualized amount of sustainable finance commitments. Only seven banks had annualized sustainable finance targets greater than the amount of finance they provide for fossil fuel-related transactions."