Last year, JPMorgan Chase was once again the number one fossil fuel financier in the world, according to the 15th Banking on Climate Chaos report compiled by a group of environmental organizations. Banks have collectively invested almost $7 trillion in fossil fuels since the Paris Climate Agreement went into effect.
As for American banks topping the list, there are a couple reasons for that.
Reason one: “The banks that are based in the U.S. are just the biggest banks in the world. I mean, that’s not just true of oil and gas; that’s true of all sorts of lines of business,” said University of Pennsylvania finance professor Dan Garrett.
And the other? Banks are under pressure to keep funding the fossil fuel industry.
For example, “Texas banned banks from participating in their public finance market that is underwriting municipal bonds, or advising on state pension funds, that sort of thing. If they had, the word is ‘discriminated against’ oil and gas companies,” Garrett said.
