On Monday, Spanish bank BBVA has increased its sustainable lending target to 700 billion euros ($732.7 billion) over the next five years.
Previously, the lender had set a goal of 300 billion euros for 2018-2025. Last year, BBVA established a new global finance unit focused on clean technologies and innovation to accelerate its sustainability efforts.
“Business opportunity in the second part of the decade will be driven by solid investment in infrastructure and by the maturity of certain new clean technologies, which will make them profitable,” said Javier Rodriguez Soler, BBVA’s global head of sustainability and corporate and investment banking.
As public pressure mounts for action on climate change, countries and corporations are committing to reducing emissions. Banks, in turn, are increasing lending for clean energy initiatives while limiting financing for polluting industries.
However, environmental advocates fear banks could be influenced by political shifts, particularly under new U.S. President Donald Trump, and could row back on their sustainability pledges.
Last week HSBC (HSBA.L) pushed back its net-zero emissions target by two decades to 2050, citing the slow pace of economic transition. BBVA, which also aims to achieve net-zero emissions by mid-century, continues to finance coal but has pledged to end such financing by 2030 in developed nations and by 2040 in other regions.
