How well do you really know your bank?
The money you keep in your current or savings account isn’t just sitting in a vault waiting for you. Banks use your deposits to fund loans and investments – often in ways that harm the environment and society.
While “trustworthiness” is the number one reason people choose a bank, many of the UK’s most popular banks fall far short when it comes to sustainability, fairness, and ethics.
A recent report by the European Central Bank revealed that banks promoting their green credentials actually lend more to high-polluting industries than their quieter counterparts.
Here, we reveal the five least ethical banks in the UK – together, they control a staggering 75 per cent of the personal banking market.
We also highlight where you can move your money to make a positive difference – for the planet, for society, and your pocket.
1. Barclays
Barclays is the UK’s most popular current account provider – but it also takes the number one spot as the least ethical.
Environmental campaigners have dubbed it the “dirtiest bank in Europe” due to its extensive financing of fossil fuels. According to the 2024 Banking on Climate Chaos report, Barclays provided $24.2 billion (£19.2 billion) to fossil fuel companies in 2023, making it Europe’s largest fossil fuel financier for the seventh consecutive year and ninth globally.
Since the 2016 Paris Agreement, Barclays has funnelled a staggering $235 billion into fossil fuel industries.
In response to mounting pressure, Barclays announced in early 2024 that it would stop direct project financing for new oil and gas fields.
However, critics branded this as greenwash, as less than two per cent of its fossil fuel financing qualifies as project-specific.
The vast majority continues to be general corporate financing, enabling companies to expand fossil fuel operations.
Last year, Barclays faced significant backlash over its financial ties to defence companies supplying Israel, leading to widespread protests and boycotts.Numerous artists withdrew from major UK festivals such as Download, Latitude, and the Isle of Wight, prompting Barclays to suspend its sponsorship of these events.
Activist groups including the Palestine Solidarity Campaign have accused Barclays of “funding genocide in Gaza” through its investments in arms companies linked to Israeli military actions. On February 9, 2024, over 1,500 individuals reportedly closed their Barclays accounts in protest.
Research by Ethical Consumer magazine also highlights issues related to animal rights, human rights, workers’ rights, political activities, anti-social finance, and tax conduct.
Barclays disputes many of these criticisms, asserting that its financing supports an energy sector in transition and that it maintains stringent policies on thermal coal and other high-emission industries.
The UK’s most ethical banks and building societies
2. HSBC (including First Direct)
HSBC reports the largest gender pay gap of all UK banks.As of 2023, its median gender pay gap was a staggering 48.3 per cent, meaning that women earned just 51.7p for every £1 earned by men. The median bonus gap was an even bigger 70.7 per cent.
Despite pledging to align its business with net-zero climate goals, HSBC has continued to finance fossil fuel projects. Between 2016 and 2023, it provided $192.2 billion (£152 billion) in finance to fossil fuel firms. In 2023 alone, the bank contributed $5.3 billion (£3.8 billion) to help oil, gas, and coal companies expand.
In 2022, HSBC announced it would ‘no longer finance new oil and gas fields’. However, this policy only prohibits direct financing for specific projects, not for the companies carrying out those projects, leading to accusations of greenwashing.
HSBC has also been accused of continuing to finance companies involved in major fossil fuel projects, such as the Rosebank oilfield in the North Sea.
The bank has faced criticism for its actions in Hong Kong, where it was accused of siding with Chinese authorities by denying pension payouts to residents who fled the region amid political crackdowns. It is said to have links to the Myanmar military through financial ties to the Myanmar Economic Corporation, a conglomerate operated by the Burmese military.
According to Ethical Consumer magazine, HSBC also has a poor record on deforestation, executive compensation, lobbying, tax conduct, and investments.
Top 5 ethical current accounts
3. Lloyds Bank (including Halifax, Bank of Scotland, and Scottish Widows)
Lloyds has positioned itself as a leader in sustainable finance, yet its actions tell a different story.
Between 2016 and 2023, the banking group provided around $21.6 billion (£17.1 billion) in financing to fossil fuel companies. In 2023 alone, it contributed $51 million (£37.8 miillion) to oil, gas, and coal companies for expansion.
In October 2022, Lloyds announced it would stop direct financing for new greenfield oil and gas developments.However, this policy does not extend to general corporate financing.Critics argue this means such pledges have minimal impact on curbing fossil fuels.
A 2025 study revealed that Lloyds, among other UK banks, has funnelled over £75 billion into companies developing major fossil fuel projects, dubbed “carbon bombs,” which could significantly hinder global climate goals.
According to the campaign group Don’t Bank on the Bomb, between January 2020 and July 2022, Lloyds invested $2.27 billion (£1.76 billion) in five companies involved in nuclear weapons production. The bank’s policy excludes funding for nuclear weapons programs outside the UK, US, and France but does not prohibit financing companies that produce nuclear weapons components or operate related sites.
BankTrack has identified Lloyds’ involvement with companies such as Shell, Cargill, and Bunge, which are associated with significant deforestation, pollution, and greenhouse gas emissions.
Lloyds has also faced criticism over executive pay. In 2024, CEO Charlie Nunn received a total remuneration of £5.6 million, a 53 per cent rise from the previous year, despite the bank’s profits falling by 20 per cent and widespread branch closures.
4. Santander
Between 2016 and 2023, Santander provided around $79.88 billion (£63.2 billion) in financing to fossil fuel companies, positioning it among Europe’s top fossil fuel financiers. In 2023 alone, the bank contributed $14.5 billion (£11.5 billion) to fossil fuel projects, marking a 77 per cent increase from the previous year.
Santander has been identified by Amazon Watch as a major financier of mining companies operating in the Amazon rainforest. From January 2016 to October 2021, the bank underwrote $392 million (£305.6 million) for these companies and held $191 million (£149 million) in shares of mining giants Anglo American, Rio Tinto, and Vale.
In 2021, Santander played a key role in arranging a $1 billion (£740 million) bond for PetroPerú, Peru’s state oil company, to finance the modernisation of its Talara refinery.
This refinery processes oil transported via the Norperuano pipeline, which traverses the Amazon rainforest and has been responsible for over 53 oil spills since 2013, severely impacting Indigenous communities and protected wetlands.
According to the 2024 “Don’t Bank on the Bomb” report, Santander invested $4.8 billion (£3.74 billion) in six companies involved in the manufacture of nuclear weapons between January 2020 and July 2022.
Ethical Consumer magazine has criticised Santander for several issues, including excessive bonuses for top executives, inadequate policies on animal rights and welfare, poor tax conduct and transparency and investments in companies linked to deforestation and environmental degradation.
How to divest your money from fossil fuels
5. NatWest (including Royal Bank of Scotland, Ulster Bank, and Coutts)
Between 2016 and 2023, NatWest provided around $27.4 billion (£21.6 billion) in financing to fossil fuel firms. In 2023 alone, the bank contributed $2.1 billion (£1.6 billion) to fossil fuel projects.
In 2024, NatWest pledged to stop financing new customers involved in fossil fuel projects and end financing for existing customers by the end of 2025.
However, it has faced criticism for continuing to finance companies like Ithaca Energy, which is involved in the controversial Rosebank oilfield project in the North Sea.
A 2025 study revealed that NatWest, among other UK banks listed here, has funnelled over £75 billion into companies developing major fossil fuel projects, dubbed “carbon bombs.”
According to Don’t Bank on the Bomb, between January 2020 and July 2022, NatWest invested $2.03 billion (£1.79 billion) in six companies involved in nuclear weapons production. The bank’s policy excludes funding for nuclear weapons programs outside NATO countries but does not prevent financing companies that produce nuclear weapons components or operate related sites.
BankTrack has identified NatWest’s involvement with companies such as Bunge and Cargill, which are associated with significant deforestation, pollution, and greenhouse gas emissions.
NatWest has also been linked to the Gulhifalhu Reclamation Project in the Maldives, which involves extensive land reclamation and dredging in an ecologically sensitive area.
In November 2022, NatWest was named in the “No questions asked: Profiting from the construction and hotel boom in Qatar” report by Fair Finance International. The report highlighted the role of financial institutions in the human and workers’ rights abuses that occurred in the construction and hotel industries ahead of the 2022 Qatar Football World Cup.NatWest was identified as a financier of Qatar’s hospitality and construction sector, providing loans and underwritings totalling $789 million (£626 million).
Concerns have been raised about the disparity between executive remuneration and employee pay at NatWest.In 2024, its CEO pay ratio was 93:1 compared to the median employee, and 139:1 compared to the lowest-paid 25 per cent of employees.
Greenwash allegations
In June 2024, Make My Money Matter called on financial and advertising watchdogs to probe into allegations of greenwashing by the five banks listed here.
The Financial Conduct Authority’s new anti-greenwashing rule demands that sustainability claims made by financial firms provide consumers be “fair, clean and not misleading.” Make My Money Matter is pressing for an examination into the “mismatch” between the banks’ climate pledges and their actual funding practices.
Where to move your money for GOOD
Switching bank is a really simple and FREE way to help bring about positive change.
A typical monthly salary removed from one of the Big Five and instead banked with a more environmentally-friendly provider ultimately means reducing the flow of finance to destructive industries such as fossil fuels and deforestation.
Ethical banks and building societies avoid investing in environmentally harmful or otherwise unethical industries, treat their staff and customers fairly, and pay their share of tax. The gold standard in ethical banking is Triodos Bank, which goes further than simply avoiding the bad stuff – it only invests your money to make a positive impact on the planet and society.
For ethical current accounts, we also like Nationwide Building Society and The Co-operative Bank as well as digital challengers such as Starling Bank. A recent report by Which? named Nationwide, The Co-operative Bank and Triodos as their Eco Providers. It found they have no exposure to fossil fuels in their banking activities.
For ethical savings accounts, we like the above as well as Charity Bank, Coventry Building Society, Ecology Building Society, Gatehouse Bank and Tandem Bank.
