JPMorgan quits climate finance group, following Citi, Bank of America

JPMORGAN Chase just became the last of Wall Street’s biggest banks to abandon the industry’s largest climate-finance alliance.

The No 1 US bank by assets said in an e-mail on Tuesday (Jan 7) that it will no longer be a member of the Net-Zero Banking Alliance (NZBA).

JPMorgan’s exit marks the latest blow to NZBA. In December alone, the alliance parted ways with Citigroup, Bank of America (BOA), Goldman Sachs and Wells Fargo. So far in January, Morgan Stanley has also said it’s quitting the group. Departures have been concentrated in the US, against a backdrop of intensified attacks by the Republican Party on what it’s sought to characterise as “woke” capitalism.

A spokesperson for NZBA declined to comment.

JPMorgan said it will “continue to work independently to advance the interests” of the bank, its shareholders and clients. The goal is to stay focused on “pragmatic solutions to help further low-carbon technologies while advancing energy security”, it said.

The departures from the alliance are a reflection of efforts by US banks to protect themselves from intensifying political pressure as Donald Trump returns to the White House, Bloomberg has reported, citing sources familiar with the matter. At the same time, the real-world fallout of the NZBA defections is unclear. According to data compiled by Bloomberg, banks have collectively stepped up their financing of the fossil-fuel industry since the alliance was formed in 2021.

The defections that have hit NZBA follow exits across similar alliances in other corners of the finance industry. In 2023, a net zero group for insurers saw a mass exodus amid GOP litigation threats. And in 2022, a climate group for asset managers parted ways with Vanguard Group, the world’s second-largest money manager.

The fraying of global climate alliances has led those in charge to regroup. The Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ), which had served as an umbrella organisation for the finance industry’s net zero groups, ended 2024 by saying it was distancing itself from those units. Going forward, GFANZ will make its guidance available to financial firms, whether they have committed to a net zero alliance or not, according to its latest update.

On Tuesday, JPMorgan said it plans to “continue engaging with GFANZ, among others, to advance pragmatic solutions and market conditions that can help further a low-carbon and energy-secure future”.

And like other banks that have left NZBA, JPMorgan said it will continue to support the banking and investment needs of clients engaged in the energy transition and in decarbonising different sectors of the economy.

There are now only three US lenders left in NZBA – Amalgamated Bank, Areti Bank and Climate First Bank – compared with about 80 banks in Europe, according to the alliance’s website.

In 2024, JPMorgan was the top-ranked banker for oil, gas and coal deals, as well as being among the top five providers of green bonds and loans, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

In its climate report, which was put out shortly after the US election, chief executive officer Jamie Dimon said that JPMorgan seeks “to enable inclusive, sustainable economic growth because it’s good for business”.

But as the world tries to avoid the worst impacts of climate change, “it also requires affordable and secure energy to thrive”, Dimon said. “Scaling zero-carbon energy is a critical path forward, but it will take time.” Critical to the whole endeavour is the inclusion of technological innovation and effective public policy, he said. BLOOMBERG