在过去的12个月中，有一系列承诺，目标和“野心" from large banks around the world to, in some way, participate in the transition to a net-zero economy. Many leaders emphasize how difficult this work will be. But for other smaller, midmarket players, these sorts of commitments have been a point of differentiation for years.
Amalgamated Bank, which was founded in 1923 and manages $6.6 billion in assets, stopped lending to fossil fuel businesses in 2016. Virginia Community Capital (VCC), a Richmond, Virginia-based community development financial institution (CDFI) with $190 million in assets, began building capacity to lend to commercial solar developments five years ago and specializes in helping installations worth as little as $50,000 get up and going. Dozens of other banks around the world have joined the Global Alliance for Banking Values (GABV), which requires its members to follow strict low-impact and sustainable practices. And some have become B Corps by demonstrating strong social and environmental performance.
这些组织中的许多组织对于范围1和范围2排放量是中性的，并致力于最大程度地减少资产负债表上的资金排放（范围3）。许多人专注于以气候为中心的贷款。许多人还优先考虑数据报告中的透明度和质量。
The power of foresight
According to every source reached to report this story, that focus on values and addressing climate risk derives from one single factor: farsighted leadership. "Because environmental sustainability is one of our top priorities as a business, we have always had the executive support required to both pursue environmental lending and avoid resource extraction lending," said Jae Easterbrooks, vice president and relationship manager for Beneficial State Bank. The bank was founded in California in 2007 with a mandate to drive community development. Since launching, it has expanded its mission to pursue environmentally sustainable practices and, according to the latest available data, manages $1.25 billion in assets.
当顶级人士说：“让我们这样做，”其他所有人都说：“好吧，我们会弄清楚如何做。”
Bill Greenleaf was hired by VCC in 2015 to work in energy efficiency lending. "I quickly discovered that no one in Virginia wanted a loan for energy efficiency," said Greenleaf, VCC’s senior vice president for real estate lending. "That market didn’t exist."
但是随后有机会为房地产开发商提供一笔小贷款。这是现有的客户，Greenleaf，他的团队进行了一些初步的承保，他们认为该项目是低风险的。
"That was all because our CEO Jane Henderson was interested in it," Greenleaf said. "When the top person says, ‘Let’s do this,’ everyone else says, ‘OK, we’ll figure out how to do it.’"
好的意图还不够
肯·劳洛（Ken Laroe）非常了解领导力的重要性。他于2009年在佛罗里达州莱克县创立了第一家绿色银行，其任务是最大程度地发挥社会和环境影响。First Green成为第一批加入GABV的北美银行之一。它积累了近8亿美元的管理资产。但是随后投资者想兑现。
拉罗说：“我们已经九年了，我的投资者变得不安。”“我尊重他们所有人，其中许多是朋友。买了我们的银行（Seacoast Bank）表示，他们至少会继续我们的价值观主张，并保留我们的人民。而且他们也没有这样做。”
截至出版时，First Green Bank仍然声称是其网站上GABV和B Corp的成员，尽管它已经失去了两个组织的会员资格。该公司拒绝发表评论的机会。
拉罗说：“我经历了一段深层沮丧的时期。”“我问自己，‘天哪，发生了什么事？’回想起来，我很高兴我们卖掉了，因为我无法先做气候。”
拉罗（Laroe）于2021年6月在佛罗里达州的圣彼得堡创立了气候第一银行。金融机构为一系列可持续性企业提供了贷款，包括建筑改造，电动汽车充电站甚至碳偏移购买。
With Climate First, LaRoe has been able to be even more intentional about impact. "[Environmentalism] has got to be in the institution's DNA," he said. "And that's not to say its profitability will suffer. There can be margin in the mission. I certainly hope that we are more profitable than traditional community banks. We were at First Green. It’s the same at every bank. I have investors, and I have a fiduciary duty."
公司银行保留
在组织银行加入的组织中，可以找到银行DNA的一个有力指标。从气候影响的角度来看，GABV位于最具影响力的范围内。该组织成立于2009年，占66名全球成员，包括合并银行和有益的国家银行。它的成员都不是世界上100个最大的银行之一。他们共同管理超过2000亿美元的资产。要加入，银行必须致力于该组织的基于价值的银行的六个原则and meet its相应的标准.
许多银行还申请成为B军团，这要求他们通过组织的气候影响评估和风险审查获得最低分数。合并，有益和VCC是每个成员，而气候第一的会员尚待审理。
Assessing impact continues to be a challenge for any banks that have lent to or invested in carbon-emitting businesses. The Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials (PCAF), which currently counts 287 members (including Amalgamated, Beneficial and Climate First, along with many of the world’s largest institutions), was launched in 2019 to address this need.
最后，零净银行联盟（NZBA）于去年成立，是格拉斯哥金融联盟净零（GFANZ）的银行业。加入联盟承诺的成员将其投资和贷款投资组合与“到2050年净零途径”，设定中介目标并每年发布绝对排放。到目前为止，一百千万银行已经做出了这一承诺，包括合并，有益的，气候的第一和许多较大的竞争对手。
由于我们朝着这种类型的贷款迈进，我们作为一家银行更加强大，我们在监管机构方面做得更好。总体而言，我们更好。
但是，许多加入NZBA的银行尚未减少其影响力。许多组织的NZBA成员资格并未转化为减少影响。根据Banking on Climate Chaos 2022 reportcompiled by a coalition of organizations, the world’s 60 largest banks have provided $4.6 trillion in financing to fossil fuel ventures since the 2016 Paris Climate Agreement. Forty-four of these banks have taken pledges to achieve net zero emissions by 2050. Many have since increased their financed emissions.
As the report authors write, "While the acknowledgement of banks’ accountability for their climate impact is welcome, as is the setting of their long-term direction of travel, long-term commitments cannot serve as cover for short-term continuation of business as usual; if they do, they are simply greenwashing."
“有很多挑战”
Among the world’s largest banks, some have taken meaningful steps forward. Paris-based Banque Postale has distinguished itself by putting a moratorium on all financing that would expand oil and gas production. It has承诺结束石油和天然气的融资完全到2030年。
其他人则强调了他们承诺的过渡将有多困难。汇丰集团首席可持续发展官塞琳·赫维耶（Celine Herweijer）在瑞士达沃斯举行的世界经济论坛年会上发表讲话竞彩足球app怎么下载讨论了她公司的承诺to issue $1 trillion in green financing by 2030. "We've got seven and a half years left," Herweijer said. "And there are challenges with that. There are a lot of challenges because, actually, the green stuff at the moment is quite hard to finance … our bankers and our credit risk teams aren't used to evaluating [these] newer companies."
合并银行CSO Ivan Frishberg不购买该论点。他说：“我认为这完全过时了。”“看看2008年的住房市场。很多数据。良好的记录。这是怎么回事？”
合并银行开始在2010年代建立气候贷款和投资能力。除了承诺不向化石燃料公司贷款外，其32％的贷款用于以气候为中心或清洁能源开发。它还提供一系列ESG投资产品。
"On our end, our credit quality has increased," Frishberg continued. "Because of our move toward this type of lending, we are stronger as a bank. We’re better lenders overall."
Still, Climate First Bank's LaRoe believes that world’s largest banks have an important role to play.
拉罗说：“我不想侮辱大银行。”"There has to be a transition and, if they are serious about transitioning, they will be helpful in the long run. You have to look at the person at the top. I’m not sure, but I don’t think [JPMorgan Chase CEO] Jamie Dimon is a bad guy. I think his heart is in the right place. They’ll probably turn out to be leaders among big banks."
