HSBC to stop funding new oil and gas fields after greenwashing criticism

HSBC will stop funding new oil and gas fields in a renewed campaign against fossil fuels after the bank was accused of greenwashing.

Britain’s biggest lender will no longer provide new lending or capital markets finance to the sector as it vows to achieve net zero emissions in its projects by 2050 or sooner.

It comes after the London-headquartered bank was accused of misleading consumers and greenwashing its reputation in a landmark ruling by the advertising watchdog.

However, the bank said it will continue funding natural gas projects, as Europe faces its biggest energy supply crunch in a generation after Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

There is a reappraisal of fossil fuels across the City, with many finance companies seeking to cut down on their investments in the industry over climate change concerns.

However, Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine has forced bankers and investors to rethink their position as the West scrambles to free itself from Russian influence.

HSBC has come under intense pressure over the speed of its embrace of sustainability in recent years, including protests at its annual meeting and widespread media campaigns highlighting its funding of fossil fuels.

Stuart Kirk, global head of responsible investing at HSBC’s asset management arm, was also suspended by the bank in may after he hit out at climate “nut jobs” during an event and asked “who cares if Miami is six metres underwater in 100 years?”.

HSBC previously set out plans to cut exposure to thermal coal financing and to stop funding that industry via the investment funds it manages actively.

In October, the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) said that HSBC had made unqualified claims and omitted material information about its environmental credentials in two high street adverts that appeared in October last year in the run-up to COP26.

The ASA said it had received 45 complaints from members of the public that accused HSBC of greenwashing its record by selectively promoting its green initiatives, while failing to disclose information about its continued financing of fossil fuels.

Earlier this year, Barclays defied green activists with a pledge to finance new oil and gas projects, with the bank saying that it intended to take a "pragmatic" approach to energy projects amid fears of a supply glut across Europe.