Triodos Bank has launched a climate change and nature strategy that includes a greater focus on biodiversity investments.

It is committed to channelling £439m into “nature based solutions that address climate and biodiversity together. This includes a pledge to report next year on its progress in meeting this target.

The bank has also set a target of financing 275 energy transition projects in the next five years, saying that “a deal-count target ensures finance not only flows to big utilities but also to cooperatives, innovators and smaller community led-solutions who often struggle to access mainstream capital”.

Also, it wants to cut emissions by 42% by 2030, instead of the 32% cut it announced three years ago.

“The target focusses on three activities that generate 90% of the bank’s footprint: business loans, mortgages and listed equities and bonds from Triodos Investment Management,” said the Bank.

Another commitment in the Bank’s strategy, called Dare To Act, is to lobby on systemic change including phasing out fossil fuels, emissions targets and aligning financial regulation with tackling climate change.

Triodos Bank is the only B-Corp certified bank listed on Euronext Amsterdam, and operates in countries including the UK, Netherlands, Belgium, Spain and Germany.

“Climate change and biodiversity loss are not separate crises,” said the bank’s chief executive Marcel Zuidam.

“They are deeply interconnected. Restoring ecosystems is essential to stabilising the climate, and climate action must protect biodiversity. Our strategy is about real reductions, real solutions, and real leadership.

“We invite the financial sector to join us in embracing long-term wellbeing and taking action for a hopeful future.

"Together, we can drive the systemic change needed to stay within planetary boundaries. This means aligning financial flows with the Paris Agreement, investing in nature restoration and a clear roadmap to end the financing of the fossil fuel industry.”

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