Latest news with #JeanneMartin
Reuters
15-07-2025
- Business
- Reuters
HSBC joins US banks in quitting climate coalition
LONDON, July 11 (Reuters) - Britain's HSBC (HSBA.L), opens new tab became the latest bank to leave the industry's climate coalition on Friday, following in the footsteps of major U.S. lenders as some governments' net zero ambitions cool. HSBC said while it recognised the role played by the Net-Zero Banking Alliance (NZBA) in developing guiding frameworks to help banks set emissions-reduction targets, the foundation was now in place and it had decided to withdraw from the group as it prepares to update its net-zero transition plan. "We remain resolutely focused on supporting our customers to finance their transition objectives and on making progress towards our net zero by 2050 ambition," an HSBC spokesperson said. Global peers including JPMorgan, Citi, Morgan Stanley, Macquarie and Bank of Montreal have all exited the group this year. The group was formed in 2021 to help align the sector with the world's goal of limiting global warming, including by mobilising more money for environmentally friendly activities and setting targets for members to reduce emissions linked to their business activities. HSBC dropped a 2030 emissions-reduction target in February blaming slow progress towards net zero in the real economy. Jeanne Martin, Co-Director of Corporate Engagement said: 'We strongly condemn HSBC's decision to leave the NZBA, which is yet another troubling signal around the bank's commitment to addressing the climate crisis." The UK government has a legally binding commitment to reach net-zero emissions by 2050. HSBC's Chief Sustainability Officer Julian Wentzel said in February the bank would take a "more measured approach" to lending to the fossil fuel industry, sparking concerns among some activists that it would row back on its climate promises. On its website, HSBC says that targets for cutting emissions linked to its loan book would "continue to be informed by the latest scientific evidence and credible industry-specific pathways". In the U.S., banks have come under pressure from some Republican politicians and been called to testify before policymakers who have accused them of colluding to unfairly penalise fossil fuel producers through their membership of groups like NZBA. The Trump administration has consistently taken a critical position on the world's efforts to fight climate change, pulling out of the Paris Agreement on climate for the second time, cutting development aid, encouraging a ramping up of fossil fuel output and rolling back environmental regulations. Legal concerns prompted the NZBA to amend rules which members then voted on in April. NZBA received strong backing in that vote to continue to help facilitate the conditions needed for banks' clients to invest in the net-zero transition, a spokesperson said.
The Independent
01-05-2025
- Business
- The Independent
HSBC set to face pressure on climate commitments at shareholder meeting
HSBC is set to face pressure from shareholders and activists to strengthen its climate commitments. The UK's largest bank will be challenged to restate its commitment to net zero at its annual general meeting in London on Friday. A representative of ShareAction, which campaigns for responsible investment, plans to read a statement, signed by 30 investors after the lender weakened a key climate target earlier this year. In its annual results published in February, HSBC revealed it pushed back its goal to reduce planet-heating emissions caused by its operations and supply chain by 20 years. The banking giant set an interim goal in 2020 to achieve net zero across its own operations and supply chain by 2030, compared with where it was in 2019 as a baseline year. But it will now aim to meet this goal by 2050. And in a move that could prove more significant for its climate ambitions, HSBC also announced a review of its 2030 targets to reduce emissions caused by its financing of polluting firms. The group of investors, which includes Nest Corporation, Trinity College Cambridge and Rathbones Investment Management, are calling on the board to use its announced review of climate targets to build on progress rather than backtrack. The bank is also facing accusations that it potentially broke its own rules on coal financing by helping to raise one billion dollars (£0.75 billion) for the mining giant Glencore. The investigation from the Bureau of Investigative Journalism (TBIJ) and The Independent, published on Thursday, found that in May 2023 the bank helped raise one billion dollars for Glencore, which had been increasing coal production for the previous two years. This was despite the bank pledging in 2021 to stop funding firms that were increasing production 'as soon as possible', according to the report. Jeanne Martin, head of the banking programme at ShareAction said: 'After dropping its chief sustainability officer from its executive committee and announcing plans to review its climate targets and policies in February, HSBC has sent deeply concerning signals around whether managing the rapidly multiplying financial risks of global heating is still one of its priorities. 'As one of the largest banks in the world with exposure across Europe and Asia, HSBC is even more vulnerable than some of its European peers to climate risks, such as the effects of extreme weather, which are already impacting the lives and livelihoods of communities across the world. 'Despite this and having shown climate leadership in the past by stopping finance for new oil and gas projects, responsible investors have now been left in the dark on just how committed the bank remains to playing its significant part in securing the long-term prosperity of our global economy. 'This group of investors is calling on the bank to urgently affirm it will continue to build on its existing climate progress rather than backtrack, and to undertake this process in dialogue with shareholders. If the bank fails to do so it should not expect shareholders to remain silent.' ShareAction said it will also ask questions calling for the bank to confirm it plans to continue holding in-person AGMs, following recent reports that the bank is considering meeting entirely online. The group also plans to challenge the board on the impact of liquefied natural gas projects on indigenous communities and the environment in the Rio Grande valley in Texas. The HSBC board will respond to ShareAction's question at the AGM. On the TBIJ story, a spokesman said: 'We follow a clear set of sustainability risk policies which support our ambition to align the financed emissions in our portfolio to net zero by 2050. 'We do not comment on client relationships.'
