6 August 2026
Climate justice organisation 350
Aotearoa has released new research examining links between
the banking sector and fossil fuels. The report finds that
the large Aussie-owned banks continue to invest in fossil
fuel expansion, while NZ-owned Kiwibank, SBS and the
Co-operative Bank remain fossil-free, following
people-powered pressure campaigns.
350 Aotearoa
campaigner Adam Currie says “Banks are the irrigation
system of our economy. They decide which industries receive
the financial water needed to grow. Our report shows that
the Australian-owned banks are still enabling new coal, oil
and gas expansion while communities are left dealing with
climate-fuelled storms, floods and droughts.”
“For
example, BNZ is lending $237 million to oil and gas
companies. What is worse, BNZ’s parent company, the NAB,
increased their financing of fossil fuel expansion companies
by over 70% in the last year alone.”
“All
four major Australian-owned banks are enabling fossil fuel
finance at exactly the moment that the world needs to close
coal mines and oil and gas fields. New Zealanders deserve to
know that their hard-earned cash is being used to finance
climate-fuelled destruction in Australia and at home. The
report also includes hopeful news. New Zealand-owned banks
such as Kiwibank are bucking the trend and sticking up for
the climate we all rely on,” says Currie
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Barry
Coates, co-CEO of Mindful Money, a charity providing
transparency on KiwiSaver and investment funds, says
“Banks like to portray themselves as ethical and
sustainable. This analysis exposes the reality of bank
lending, cutting through the rhetoric. Bank customers across
Aotearoa can now see which banks are supporting the
transition to renewable energy and those that are continuing
to pour fuel on the fire.”
The report also assesses
banks’ sustainable finance offerings, although Currie
notes: “Green loans are good, and they are needed to
decarbonise our economy. But clean finance will not save the
climate if banks simultaneously bankroll fossil fuel
expansion. Banks cannot solar-panel their way out of
financing fossil-fuel expansion.”
350 Aotearoa is
encouraging New Zealanders to pressure banks to divest from
fossil fuels. “Banks compete fiercely for customers. When
enough of us switch to fossil-free alternatives, boardrooms
can’t ignore the
pressure.”