14 September 2020 NAB has announced it will review its policy relating to finance for oil & gas within the next 6-12 months. The bank’s CEO Ross McEwan disclosed NAB’s intentions on Friday afternoon as part of a House of Representatives Economics Committee hearing. Asked whether the bank has banned … Read More
Media release: Fossil fuel lending by Australian banks tops AU$35bn
New Market Forces analysis – Funding Climate Failure Wednesday 8 July, 2020: Despite repeated pledges and policies to the contrary, Australia’s big four banks have once again increased funding to the expansion of the fossil fuel industry over the past year. The figures mean fossil fuel lending has topped $35.5 … Read More
Bushfire survivors call on banks to stop funding climate crisis
20 March 2020 Today, anyone leafing through the pages of the Australian Financial Review can’t have missed this powerful ad on page 15: The Bushfire Survivors for Climate Action group has sent an open letter to the major Australian banks calling on them to stop funding new fossil fuel projects … Read More
Australia’s major banks keep on fueling the climate crisis
7 March 2020 The latest data on bank lending to fossil fuels over the last four years shows that Australia’s major banks continue to undermine the Paris Agreement and global action on the climate crisis by lending to dirty fossil fuels. Westpac, Commbank, ANZ and NAB collectively poured a massive … Read More
Shareholders fire a shot across NAB’s bow over climate failure
18 December 2019 After record levels of shareholder support for climate risk management resolutions at ANZ and Westpac, it was NAB’s turn today to face the music over its failure to adequately manage climate risk. Since the Paris Agreement was signed in 2015, NAB has continued to lend heavily to … Read More
NAB climate commitments too little, too late
15 November 2019 NAB’s sustainability report, released today, signaled an end to the bank’s involvement in thermal coal mining, but places its exit far later than what is needed to help meet the Paris Agreement climate goals. The commitment to be out of thermal coal by 2035 is five years … Read More
Too little, too late: NAB’s new climate policy an exercise in greenwash
15 November 2019: NAB’s Sustainability Report, released today, is little more than greenwash and a recipe for climate catastrophe, says environmental finance group Market Forces. In particular, its central announcement to exit thermal coal mining by 2035 is a clear example of too little too late, falling short of time … Read More
Media Release: Three major banks face shareholder resolutions on climate action
Westpac, NAB and ANZ called upon to reduce exposure to fossil fuels in line with the Paris Agreement’s climate change goals. Thursday 10 October 2019 Environmental finance organisation Market Forces is today lodging shareholder resolutions with Westpac, NAB and ANZ today. The resolutions call for a reduction in lending and … Read More
Our Future: clean energy a test for banks’ rehabilitation
Today’s release of the Royal Commission’s report into the financial services industry will chronicle the recent misconduct of the major banks and plot a course for how the industry can restore some integrity. It’s going to be a long road back, but one opportunity for redemption comes in the role banks can play reshaping our energy landscape.
Big four banks increase their fossil fuel exposure
January 2019 Australia’s major banks have been getting back into fossil fuels over the last year, casting doubt on their seriousness in tackling climate change through their investments. This study compares the banks’ reported exposures to fossil fuels and renewable energy from 2017 to 2018, finding some very worrying trends. … Read More