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ING is the first global bank to meet standards for climate change monitoring

ING is the first global bank to meet standards for climate change monitoring

The body that awards the standard announced on Wednesday that ING is the first global systemically significant bank to have had its climate goals validated in accordance with efforts to limit global heating to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

In a press release, the bank stated that it had achieved its targets for lending in the areas of fossil fuels and power generation as well as cement, steel, automobile, aviation, commercial real estate, and automotive.

Dutch lender announced in 2022 that it would phase out financing for upstream oil and natural gas by 2040. Last year, the Dutch lender further restricted some oil companies' access to general loans and bond issuance.

Nate Aden is the head of Financial Standards for the Science-Based Targets Initiative (SBTi).

Bankers and policymakers are debating whether 1.5C is still a realistic target, as many climate plans for countries and sector policies indicate a significant overshoot.

The world's largest climate group for banks has proposed that 1.5C no longer be the north star of its members' climate plans. This comes after several large lenders left the group or reduced their net-zero goals.

The validation is still a source of prestige for the industry, and it also influences the lending decisions and supply of finance. Some banks will only lend to companies that meet SBTi goals.

SBTi is a voluntary group that includes technical experts, consultants and NGOs, and also has a scientific advisory panel. It has become the authority for corporate climate targets.

The document says that sector targets should align to 1.5C unless there is no 1.5C pathway available. In this case, a pathway well below 2C can be used.

In 2015, the Paris Agreement committed countries to limit temperature rises to 1.5C over the average of 1850-1900 to reduce the impact of global warming. Reporting by Virginia Furness, Editing by Alison Williams

(source: Reuters)