Investing in Climate Chaos

Who invests in fossil fuel?

Urgewald published their « Investing in Climate Chaos » report in partnership with over 20 NGOs to drill down on which institutional investors keep supporting coal, oil and gas companies.

The report comes with a website on which reader can explore all the data underlying the analyses and the methodology used to write the report.

Their key conclusions include:

• More that 6500 institutional investors hold about $2T in oil an and gas and $1T in coal assets.
• ETF giants Vanguard and Blackrock account for 17% ($532B) of all equity and debt holdings in fossil fuel companies.
• 23 investors (including 18 US ones) account for 50% of all fossil fuel investments.
• Over 40% of institutional investments in fossil fuel companies are in the hands of members of the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ).
• US investors hold shares and bonds worth about $2T, and European countries put together reach $369B.

Many of the investors at the top of the fossil fuel investment leaderboard are universal holders, who have a hard time adjusting their holdings when they rely too heavily on index and passive investing.

Additionally, some are uniquely positioned to create change using active engagement and stewardship, raising questions regarding the best way for them to design a sustainable long-term strategy for these holdings.