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JPMorgan Chase bid farewell to the Net-Zero Banking Alliance on Tuesday, making it the last big U.S. bank to leave the climate-banking group ahead of the second Trump administration.
JPMorgan's exit comes on the heels of similar departures last week by three of its peers — Bank of America, Citigroup and Morgan Stanley. In early December, Goldman Sachs became the first large U.S. bank to leave the alliance. Wells Fargo's exit was reported about two weeks later.
The exodus by the six largest U.S. banks reflects banks' changing priorities as President-elect Donald Trump prepares to take office in 13 days. Trump has said he wants to immediately boost U.S. oil and gas development and repeal legislation that provides funding for clean energy.
Just three U.S. banks remain members of the Net-Zero Banking Alliance — Amalgamated Bank in New York City; Climate First Bank in St. Petersburg, Florida; and Areti Bank in Puerto Rico. The group was formed in 2021 to mobilize the private sector to align financing activities with the Paris climate accord. Founding members included Bank of America, Citi and Morgan Stanley.
The alliance's website currently identifies 141 member banks from 44 different countries. A spokesperson for the group declined to comment Tuesday on JPMorgan's decision to withdraw.
In a statement confirming its departure, JPMorgan said it will "continue to work independently to advance the interests" of the company, its shareholders and its clients and "remain focused on pragmatic solutions to help further low-carbon technology while advancing energy security."
"We will also continue to support the banking and investment needs of our clients who are engaged in energy transition and in decarbonizing different sectors of the economy," it said.
The $4.2 trillion-asset company also expects to "continue engaging" with the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero and other groups "to advance pragmatic solutions and market conditions that can help further a low-carbon and energy-secure future," it noted. The Net-Zero Banking Alliance is a subgroup of the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero, also founded in 2021.
In its own statement last week, Citi said it plans to "focus [its] attention" on the Glasgow group.
Climate-change advocacy groups were critical Tuesday of the big banks' decision to leave the alliance.
Allison Fajans-Turner, who oversees bank engagement and policy for the Rainforest Action Network, noted in a statement that the departing banks "are not absolved of their fiduciary responsibilities to manage and reduce climate financial risk or to deliver on their climate commitments."