Barclays pressured by shareholders to cut fossil fuel financing

(Reuters News, 8 Jan 2020) The move comes just days after outgoing Bank of England governor Mark Carney said the financial services industry had been too slow to cut investment in fossil fuels.

A group of Barclays shareholders coordinated by responsible investment lobby group ShareAction want the bank to phase out financing fossil fuels, stepping up pressure on one of Europe's biggest funders of the sector.

Eleven institutional investors have filed a resolution to be voted on at Barclays' annual meeting in May, requiring the bank to set out plans to stop providing all financial services to firms not aligned with the Paris climate agreement.

The pressure on Barclays comes at a time when shareholders, prompted by activists and mounting public concern, are increasingly urging the companies they invest in to do more to combat the climate crisis.

Up to now, investors have largely focused their collective efforts on big oil and gas companies responsible for producing fossil fuels, with resolutions at companies including Royal Dutch Shell, BP and Equinor.

The Barclays resolution will mark the first time a European bank has faced such shareholder action on fossil fuel financing. It calls on Barclays to go further than its previous public commitments to combat climate change by forcing it to set specific targets.

The move comes just days after outgoing Bank of England governor Mark Carney said the financial services industry had been too slow to cut investment in fossil fuels.

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Reuters News, 8 Jan 2020: Barclays pressured by shareholders to cut fossil fuel financing