HSBC confirms $1bn commitment to plug climate tech funding gaps

The pledge will go towards net zero and climate technologies, targeting the early stages of technological innovation. The financial commitment aligns with HSBC’s pledge to achieve financed net zero emissions by 2050.

Primarily, the funding will go towards startups pursuing clean technologies such as carbon removal, capture and storage, EV charging, battery and energy storage, sustainable agriculture, and sustainable food projects.

The $1bn financial commitment aligns with HSBC’s previously announced investment programmes, including HSBC Innovation Banking and HSBC Asset Management’s Climate Tech Venture Capital. Additionally, HSBC have previously invested $100mn in Bill Gates’ Breakthrough Energy Catalyst Fund.

Barry O’Byrne, HSBC’s global commercial banking chief executive, said “Access to finance is critical for early-stage climate tech companies to create and scale real world solutions… With HSBC’s global reach, in-house climate tech expertise, and newly launched Innovation Banking proposition, we can offer these pioneer companies unrivalled support.”

Why is this fund significant for green technology?

Recent studies have shown that venture capital funding has fallen across the startup landscape, with climate tech organisations experiencing a 40 per cent decline in funding in the first half of 2023.

In addition, the IEA have outlined in their recent Net Zero Emissions Roadmap that roughly 35 per cent of emissions reductions needed to meet the 2050 net zero target are reliant on technologies that are currently unavailable. Investing in the green technology organisations innovating these technologies is essential for delivering net zero, and a lack of early-stage funding is a key barrier for these firms.