The financial industry will be relied on to meet climate goals. NatWest, a lender to oil giants, provides a template. Advocates descended on the streets of Glasgow last month, pressing banks and other financial institutions at 26th United Nations climate summit to be more responsible stewards of the climate. But a bank based just 50 miles east of the Scottish city is already showing what that might look like. NatWest, formerly the Royal Bank of Scotland, has made the unlikely transformation from substantial financier of the oil and gas industry to a leader in green finance, whittling down its fossil fuel exposure and pledging to funnel 100 billion pounds, or $133 billion, into sustainable-energy projects in the next four years. The bank, with headquarters in Edinburgh, could serve as an example of the huge shift necessary for Britain’s banking and investment sector to become, in the government’s words, “the world’s first net-zero-aligned financial center.” Since Brexit, Britain’s financial industry has lost some of its luster, as London can no longer be used as a hub for European business. The Treasury, determined to maintain the nation’s eminence, is exploring other ways to attract investors, including loosening the rules for listing companies to attract founder-led tech start-ups and backing financial technology companies. But green finance could also be an answer. NatWest’s climate-friendly transformation has even earned the cautious praise of some of its protesters. Johan Frijns, a co-founder of BankTrack, a Dutch organization that pressures banks to give up financing fossil fuel projects, said NatWest could set a new benchmark for how to transform a large bank for a low-carbon economy. “We almost desperately want to see NatWest as a beacon of hope, as a bank that shows it can change,” Mr. Frijns said. “And it comes from very far. It was proud to be the oil and gas bank.” The transition at NatWest has been... |