What if I told you that the self-proclaimed EU Climate Bank is still investing in the companies responsible for burning our planet?
Officially, the European Investment Bank (EIB) has a policy that makes its investments conditional on the adoption of decarbonisation targets and climate commitments. The PATH framework is supposed to ensure that public money is not given to polluting companies, banks, or investment funds that still fuel the climate crisis.
But five years after its introduction, the chickens have come home to roost. Billions are still being given to companies claiming they’re turning green while still failing to cut their emissions and stop new fossil investments. Major banks and investment funds have substantially weakened their climate policies and expanded their fossil exposure.
The revised PATH framework should close all these loopholes. The EU Climate Bank can play a pivotal role in ensuring that companies actually comply with the Paris Agreement.
That’s why Counter Balance together with 07 organisations, has sent a letter to the EIB calling for:
- No more exceptions that greenwash fossil giants.
- Strong climate commitments from companies, with effective implementation and sanctions for those that fail to comply.
- Ambitious climate criteria and transition plans in the banking sector, with all banks and financial actors in scope of the policy.
If the EIB really wants to be the EU’s Climate Bank, it needs to stop financing the companies and financial institutions fuelling the climate crisis.
