MADRID (Reuters) - Spain's BBVA (BME:BBVA) has raised its sustainable finance target to 300 billion euros ($291 billion) for the period between 2018 and 2025 from a current goal of 200 billion euros, the lender's chairman, Carlos Torres, said on Wednesday.
The decision comes during a global energy market crisis and mounting pressure on financial institutions to stop funding fossil fuel industries. Last week, BBVA said it would work with oil and gas clients in its credit portfolio with the aim to reduce their global carbon emissions by 30% by 2030.
"The current moment requires us all to increase our efforts to support clean energy and fight climate change and inequality," Torres said on the sidelines of an annual meeting of the Institute of International Finance in Washington.
In 2018, BBVA, one of the largest announced its first sustainable financing target of 100 billion euros, which was doubled three years later to 200 billion euros.
Between January 2018 and June 2022, BBVA reached a total of 112 billion euros in such financing, with 77% related to climate action and 23% to inclusive growth, it said.
By segments, 65% comes from corporate and investment banking operations for large clients, followed by companies and retail financing.
($1 = 1.0305 euros)