JPMorgan to Increase Restrictions on Coal Funding

By Maitane Sardon

JPMorgan Chase & Co said Tuesday that it is reducing its funding of coal and Arctic oil-and-gas projects, as it works toward aligning itself with the Paris Agreement on climate change.

The move comes as other European banks and major US bank Goldman Sachs have announced similar limits to the funding of coal, the most polluting of all fossil fuels.

The bank--which has previously come under fire for its fossil-fuel funding--unveiled a series of sustainable initiatives including a plan to stop providing loans, capital markets or advisory services to companies which derive the majority of their revenue from the extraction of coal. It said it will also stop backing new oil-and-gas projects in the Arctic.

"This announcement is a long awaited signal that JPMorgan Chase may be ending its outsized level of fossil-fuel financing in the face of growing climate concern; this first step is significant," said Danielle Fugere, president of As You Sow, a non-profit that has filed a resolution requesting the company reduce its lending to carbon-intensive activities.

The bank also said it is joining Climate Action 100+, the world's largest group of investors by assets, which is pressuring companies to act on climate change. Blackrock Inc., the world's largest asset manager with around $7 trillion under management, joined the group of investors in January.

Furthermore, JPMorgan said it will establish an ESG group that will help its clients reduce their emissions and respond to the increasing demand for sustainable and impact investing.

Write to Maitane Sardon at maitane.sardon@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

February 25, 2020 12:07 ET (17:07 GMT)

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