A Crisis in Governance: Global Banks Increase Fossil Fuel Financing Despite Climate Commitments

A new report by eight environmental groups reveals that in 2024, the world’s largest banks committed $869 billion in financing to fossil fuel companies, marking a $162 billion increase from the previous year. As discussed in a recent article for the Guardian (Milman, 2025), this rise contradicts prior trends of declining fossil fuel divestment and undermines public climate commitments from banks, particularly at a time when the impacts of climate change worsen. 

The article highlights that while banks claim to be balancing energy security with green investments, critics argue these efforts are weakened by the continued support for fossil fuel expansion. Since the 2015 Paris Agreement, big banks have funneled $7.9 trillion into fossil fuel projects. Compounding this issue, major U.S. banks also recently withdrew from the Net-Zero Banking Alliance - a UN initiative aligned with Paris goals - amid political shifts such as the U.S. President Trump’s return to power and U.S. Treasury withdrawal from a green finance initiative. The article underscores the urgent need for stronger public regulation, transparency requirements, and enforcement mechanisms to hold financial institutions accountable. 

These findings expose the growing disconnect between what major financing bodies say about climate action and what they actually do. Without government intervention or international legal frameworks that mandate emissions reductions, climate governance remains vulnerable to political shifts and motivations. It is clear that enhanced accountability is needed not only from banks, but also from governments, to ensure financial decisions align with global climate goals and the realities of a changing global climate.

Written by Sabrina Careri, for Ann Dale.

Photo credit: Markus Spiske from Unsplash