New Yorkers,

If you care about our transition to a fossil-free economy, I’ve got some hopeful news:

As reported in Bloomberg, three of the biggest banks in North America – JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, and Royal Bank of Canada – have reached an agreement with NYC pension funds to publicly disclose their Clean Energy Ratios. And it’s all thanks to the persistent shareholder engagement my office did on behalf of NYC pension funds.

What, exactly, is a “Clean Energy Ratio,” you may ask? :-)

In simpler terms, a Clean Energy Ratio is a calculation of how much a bank is funding fossil fuels versus clean energy. As long-term investors, we keep a close eye on Clean Energy Ratios because they indicate a financial institution’s progress toward decarbonization.

This is a huge deal, not only because this sets a new standard of transparency for the banking sector – but because these agreements were reached after my office's work on behalf of NYC pension funds. I’m proud that our shareholder proposals are driving climate progress in the banking sector and helping to protect investors from climate-driven financial risks.

Still, the transition from financing fossil fuels to low-carbon energy is going way too slowly – and thus far, it hasn’t even been possible for shareholders to track. Despite their commitments to decarbonize, U.S. and Canadian banks have financed over $1 trillion of fossil fuel extraction since the Paris Accords.

I now call on Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, and Morgan Stanley (where NYC pension funds have outstanding shareholder proposals and planned shareholder engagement) to follow JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, and Royal Bank of Canada’s lead and agree to disclose their Clean Energy Ratios.

At a time when our planet and investment portfolios are at risk, I’m doing everything I can to push Wall Street on the ride side of climate history…

It’s why we’re pushing banks to disclose their Clean Energy Ratios.

It’s why we’re transparently tracking NYC pension funds' climate progress.

And it’s why NYC pension funds adopted the most ambitious plan to reach net zero emissions in the country.

More soon,

Brad