Banks must be bolder on carbon offsets

The controversy around voluntary carbon markets has deterred banks from getting involved. They need to worry less about reputational risk and more about the planet.

At the COP26 climate conference, carbon market players and conservationists met to discuss how to improve the quality of carbon offsets. The event made headlines – but not for the reasons its convener, Mark Carney, had presumably hoped.

Greta Thunberg, who attended the meeting, walked out halfway through saying loudly: “Stop greenwashing.”

The Swedish teenage activist echoed the position taken by Greenpeace. In November, the environmental NGO published a blog post titled “Carbon offsets are a scam”.

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