Watchdog bans HSBC ads in fresh blow to bank’s green credentials

theguardian.com:

HSBC has suffered a fresh blow to its green credentials after the UK advertising watchdog banned a series of misleading adverts and said any future campaigns must disclose the bank’s contribution to the climate crisis.

The ruling by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) followed dozens of complaints over posters that appeared on high streets and bus stops in the lead-up to the Cop26 climate change conference in Glasgow last October.

The watchdog said the adverts, which highlighted how the bank had invested $1tn in climate-friendly initiatives such as tree-planting and helping clients hit climate targets, failed to acknowledge HSBC’s own contribution to emissions.

“Despite the initiatives highlighted in the ads … HSBC was continuing to significantly finance investments in businesses and industries that emitted notable levels of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gasses. We did not consider consumers would know that was the case,” the ASA said. “We concluded that the ads omitted material information and were therefore misleading.”

The ruling came months after HSBC was forced to suspend Stuart Kirk, a senior banker who referred to climate crisis warnings as “unsubstantiated” and “shrill”.

HSBC’s latest annual report said its financed emissions – clients and projects it provided loans and services to – were linked to the release of 65.3m tonnes of carbon dioxide a year. That figure only accounted for its oil and gas clients but would probably be much higher if other carbon-heavy industries such as utilities, construction, transport and coalmining were included, the ASA noted.

The watchdog ruled that HSBC had to ensure any future environmental claims were “adequately qualified and did not omit material information about its