A report by Urgewald, a Germany-based environmental organization, found that UK-based banks have been Europe’s largest financial supporters of the coal industry over the past four years. Between 2021 and the present, British banks channeled $8.3bn into coal financing, substantially exceeding contributions from German banks at $4.9bn and French banks at $3.4bn during the same timeframe.
The research tracked lending and underwriting activities from 744 commercial banks worldwide to entities operating across the coal supply chain, encompassing mining, power generation, logistics, exploration and trading operations. Analysis revealed that UK bank financing in this sector increased by 17% over the period, contrasting sharply with a 46% reduction from EU banks overall. Two major institutions—Barclays and HSBC—accounted for much of this growth, with Barclays increasing coal financing by 34% from approximately $1.2bn in 2022 to $1.6bn in 2025, while HSBC more than doubled its exposure from $200m to $414m.
Both banks contested the findings. HSBC stated it has committed to phasing out financing for thermal coal-fired power and thermal coal mining by 2030 in EU and OECD markets, noting that its reported thermal coal financing exposures fell from approximately $1bn to $0.5bn between 2020 and 2024. Barclays characterized many of the companies in the report as diversified energy firms and stated it does not finance entities deriving more than 30% of revenues from thermal coal operations, emphasizing its role in financing energy sector transition.
Globally, bank financing for coal remained relatively flat between 2022 and 2025, averaging approximately $117bn annually despite commitments made at climate negotiations. However, significant geographic variations emerged, with Chinese banks accounting for 62% of global coal financing at $289bn, increasing 8% over four years, while US banks provided $67bn with a 23% increase. Indonesian banks raised their coal financing by 64%. Conversely, EU, Taiwanese, Malaysian and Thai banks substantially reduced their coal commitments.
Urgewald’s director noted that clear coal policies could effectively restrict funding flows, but cautioned that progress in certain regions was being offset by rising finance elsewhere, urging banks to implement policies ruling out new coal projects and reduce current financing immediately.
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