Canada Banks Keep Climate Pledges as Rival RBC Drops Targets
The Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) headquarters in the financial district of Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Photographer: Laura Proctor/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Royal Bank of Canada’s decision to drop its sustainable finance commitment has sparked speculation that other major Canadian players could quietly walk away from their own goals on climate-related lending, underwriting and advisory work.
Canada’s biggest bank abandoned its pledge on that front in its latest sustainability report, pointing to changes to the country’s Competition Act that restrict the kinds of environmental claims firms can make. Royal Bank’s report, published last week, also cited “evolving” methodologies for measuring and reporting on sustainable finance.