A Higher Education Institution Consortium, of which UCL is a member, recently identified sustainable banking options that universities could invest into.
The University of Cambridge launched the coalition seeking more sustainable investment options for universities back in 2024.
UCL was one of the 21 higher education institutions involved in this coalition.
UCL, alongside other universities, was “calling on financial institutions to offer cash investing options that don’t contribute to financing the expansion of greenhouse gas-emitting fossil fuels”.
This year, the coalition has identified seven banks that do not contribute to financing fossil fuels, which aligned with the 2024 Request for Proposal.
Heather Davis, Head of Group Treasury at Cambridge stated, “We challenged the banking sector to bring new ideas, and we are delighted to say that the banking institutions now part of the consortium have all delivered.”
There are seven banks that meet the regulations: The Co-operative Bank, Coventry Building Society, Handelsbanken, Leeds Building Society, Skipton Building Society, Unity Trust Bank, and Yorkshire Building Society.
Erin Squires, UCL’s Head of Treasury Management and Sustainable Finance stated, “It has been a welcome outcome to see this collaboration grow as it has, especially given the pressures facing the higher education sector and the broader global context. The level of engagement speaks to a shared sense of purpose and urgency on climate”.
Despite being part of the coalition, UCL has, at times, directed money to less sustainable investment opportunities. For example, investing in tech companies that worked for the Israeli government.
UCL has a number of long-term borrowing arrangements with several lenders, primarily Barclays, as disclosed in its financial statements.
Barclays is ranked first in Europe for financing fossil fuel emissions and has also been funding Israeli arms companies. On 7 May, students at the University protested UCL’s banking choices.
The relationship with Barclays also drew criticism at the the term three Students’ Union Community Awards, with winners of ‘Campaign of the Year’, UCL Banking Taskforce, claiming that the University’s banking practices should “not fund genocide or ecocide”.
Additionally, UCL has had a long-standing mobility-focused partnership with Santander Universities.
This partnership has provided mobility opportunities, including bursaries, to UCL students.
However, Santander faced criticism in 2025 for indirectly funding deforestation by supporting Argentinian company Cresud.
The Students’ Union recently committed to moving £2 million out of Barclays into Aldermore and Triodos, banks that rank highly when assessed against sustainability criteria.
Time will tell if UCL decides to follow suit.
A UCL spokesperson said:
“We have a longstanding commitment to sustainability. We fully divested our endowment from fossil fuels in 2019 as part of a wider strategy to align with the transition to a low‑carbon economy.
“Our participation in the University of Cambridge-led Banking Engagement Forum reflects our work to create and grow viable alternatives across the financial landscape.
“Like many large institutions, our banking services support critical operations such as processing tuition payments, receiving research funding and funding our day-to-day operations.
“Those services must be able to handle large transaction sizes that match our scale and meet stringent requirements around resilience and regulation. Changes to these arrangements would require careful consideration.
“Major suppliers are assessed with sustainability being an important factor. We seek partners that support the transition to a more sustainable planet.”
On NICE, a UCL spokesperson said:
“We have an investment policy which sets out red lines in relation to companies in which we will not invest. Nice Ltd fully complied with this policy at the time of investment.
“Our investment policy is overseen by the Investments Committee of our governing body, UCL Council, which includes student representation.”