Energy industry

As banks pull back from energy lending, some of the world’s biggest hedge funds are rushing in to fill the gap in oil country.

Oil and gas companies — flush with cash from rising oil prices — are catching up on debt payments and will seek new credit later in the year as the economy recovers, the Oklahoma company says.

House and Senate GOP members have stepped up criticism of a plan to include banks in a global push to cut emissions, saying it could cut off financial services access for energy and fossil fuel companies.

For now, banks say they have no plans to curtail lending to oil and gas firms, but recent moves by the new administration — including a halt in drilling on federal land and an effort to stop the Keystone XL Pipeline — could cause them to re-evaluate their long-term commitment to the fossil fuel industry.

Citigroup found that the rapid enactment of a carbon tax would likely lead to a significant increase in losses on loans the bank has made to certain oil and gas companies.

While banks are reporting steady declines in deferrals, hard-hit borrowers such as airlines, commercial real estate developers and hotel operators will almost certainly struggle to regain their footing.

The emergence of vaccines has boosted travel forecasts — and crude prices. The expected bump at the pump could help oil and gas companies get back on track with loan payments.

The Bank Policy Institute submitted a Freedom of Information Act request to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency requesting the agency's analysis used in crafting the plan.

In November, the Sierra Club singled out Bank of America as "the only major U.S. bank not to rule out financing for the destruction of the Arctic refuge" after its five biggest competitors updated their policies this year.

Global regulators are considering a universal stress test for climate change that requires lenders to use a 30-year horizon, a difficult and speculative projection of the energy industry that could harm bank financials.

The industry is asking for more time to comment on a regulatory proposal that aims to prohibit banks from denying services to oil and gas companies and other firms in politically sensitive industries.

The Ohio company, which has beefed up its loan-loss reserves, raised the possibility of more sales of oil and gas credits and talked up strong retail segments such as its marine and RV loans.

Banks lending against the oil and natural gas reserves of hundreds of independent U.S. drilling companies have pulled back from the sector at an unprecedented rate this year after oil and gas prices slumped.

The Dallas bank set aside less in the second quarter for credit losses than analysts expected. Executives cited action in Texas and California to reverse reopenings and said they're still committed to the oil and gas business.

The Mississippi company said it decided to take aggressive measures to reduce its exposure to energy firms.

The Birmingham, Ala., company more than doubled its loan-loss provision from three months earlier and its chief financial officer said that more than half of its loans to oil and gas companies could eventually become criticized.

Bankers had asserted in April that they could handle a slump in oil prices tied to the coronavirus pandemic. Continued volatility, combined with declining collateral values and a rise in bankruptcies for exploration companies, is denting their confidence.

Deferral periods on scores of commercial loans will soon be ending, and many banks’ profits this year could turn on whether borrowers can resume making payments or will seek extensions.

Borrowers say getting the loans forgiven is just as complicated as obtaining the money; payment companies are holding some merchant funds in reserve as chargebacks spike.

Dramatic volatility in the global oil market, plummeting demand and potential regulatory risks are making some banks rethink their energy strategy.