City tilts toward tackling climate change

Over half of City firms have put climate change at the top of their list of priorities, compared to just a third last year.

59 per cent of UK financial institutions have made addressing climate change the key issue driving their strategic agenda, according to research by Lloyds Bank.

One in three financial firms saw climate change as a priority last year, highlighting the pace at which the issue has risen up the corporate agenda in just a year.

Finance firms are uniquely placed to aid the fight against climate change by having access to vast amounts of capital that could be deployed to finance sustainable projects, according to Adrian Walkling, head of financial services at Lloyds Commercial Banking.

“We are at a crucial juncture in the fight to protect the planet from climate change. This year’s report shows financial institutions are not only committed to playing their part, but they also have a dual role to play in providing finance for sustainability or investing in it, as well as their own operations,” he said.

“An unprecedented amount of low-carbon financing must be deployed across every sector of the economy if the UK is to achieve its net-zero target by 2050. Firms are increasing their efforts to deliver against this requirement, while working to reduce their own carbon footprints.”

Environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues have soared to the top of the global finance agenda as heads of the world’s biggest finance firms wake up to the possible impact climate change could have on their bottom lines. 

ESG investment opportunities are also one of the fastest growing asset classes, making them more attractive to City firms.

Lloyds’s research also found 43 per cent of firms plan to make their environmental sustainability goals more ambitious over the next 12 months.