Regulators must prevent private finance from stalling the fossil fuel phaseout

The document asserts that private finance continues to bankroll the fossil fuel industry despite net-zero alliances, which have largely collapsed or been gutted due to industry backlash. It calls for regulators to mandate climate transition plans, exclude fossil fuel assets from central bank collateral frameworks, and pass legislation to choke off funding for fossil fuels. While some progress is noted in coal restrictions and specific European institutional investor pledges, the author maintains that binding regulation is essential to ensure private capital accelerates rather than obstructs the global energy transition.

• Voluntary net-zero alliances among asset managers, banks, and insurers have largely failed because many institutions were not serious about their commitments and later gutted or quit the alliances following pressure from the fossil fuel industry and the reelection of Trump.
• To steer the financial sector away from fossil fuels, regulators should mandate that banks, investors, and insurers create climate transition plans and ensure fossil fuels are excluded from ESG, sustainable, and green products.
• Central banks can discourage dirty investments by excluding fossil fuel assets from asset purchase programs, reserve management, and collateral frameworks, while using green refinancing operations to lower capital costs for renewables.
• Some progress has been made through coal restriction policies and specific actions by European investors, such as some pledging to stop buying new oil and gas stocks and bonds, and EU asset owners firing BlackRock for poor climate performance.

APA

Manickawasagar, A. (2026). Regulators must prevent private finance from stalling the fossil fuel phaseout. Reclaim Finance. https://reclaimfinance.org/site/en/2026/04/13/regulators-must-prevent-private-finance-from-stalling-the-fossil-fuel-phaseout/

Chicago

Manickawasagar, Aatiraï. Regulators must prevent private finance from stalling the fossil fuel phaseout. Reclaim Finance, 2026. https://reclaimfinance.org/site/en/2026/04/13/regulators-must-prevent-private-finance-from-stalling-the-fossil-fuel-phaseout/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Manickawasagar |first1=Aatiraï |title=Regulators must prevent private finance from stalling the fossil fuel phaseout |publisher=Reclaim Finance |date=13 April 2026 |url=https://reclaimfinance.org/site/en/2026/04/13/regulators-must-prevent-private-finance-from-stalling-the-fossil-fuel-phaseout/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{manickawasagar2026regulators, author = {Manickawasagar, Aatiraï}, title = {{Regulators must prevent private finance from stalling the fossil fuel phaseout}}, publisher = {Reclaim Finance}, year = {2026}, month = apr, url = {https://reclaimfinance.org/site/en/2026/04/13/regulators-must-prevent-private-finance-from-stalling-the-fossil-fuel-phaseout/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }