Banks 'light the flame of the climate crisis'
The world's biggest banks financed fossil fuels to the tune of US$705 billion in 2023, with US and Japanese lenders leading the way, an annual report by climate campaigners said on Monday. Since the 2015 Paris climate agreement, the top 60 banks have provided a total of US$6.9 trillion to the sector, according to the coalition's 15th annual report titled "Banking on Climate Chaos". "Financiers and investors of fossil fuels continue to light the flame of the climate crisis," said Tom BK Goldtooth, executive director of Indigenous Environmental Network, one of the report's authors. Last year's fossil fuel funding was down 9.5 percent from 2022, the report said. But some banks increased their exposure to climate risk, it said. JPMorgan was the top financier last year, providing US$41 billion, a 5.4 percent increase from 2022, according to the report. Japan's Mizuho moved up to second place with US$37 billion, followed by Bank of America at US$33.7 billion. "As one of the world's largest financiers to both traditional and clean energy companies, we help power today's global economy," said a JPMorgan Chase spokesperson in response. "We believe our data reflects our activities more comprehensively and accurately than estimates by third parties. Reflecting our strategy of supporting the build-out of zero-carbon power, we set a net-zero aligned Energy Mix target and will disclose a clean energy supply financing ratio." (AFP)