12:01 PM EDT, 03/19/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Barclays ( JJCTF ) Chief Executive C.S. Venkatakrishnan said political differences on environmental, social and governance issues are hurting the global shift to sustainability at a key time, according to a Bloomberg News report Tuesday.

"We are standing on the brink of a transformative era in the drive towards a net-zero economy," Venkatakrishnan reportedly said at a Barclays ESG conference for clients in New York. "You already are seeing in the world signs of a wavering strength of commitment."

Amid pushback from key Republican lawmakers and conservative groups in the US against investing strategies that consider ESG, many high-profile financial institutions are scaling back participation in international climate deals, according to the report.

"People are still committed, but we feel like we go forward and we go a little backward," Venkatakrishnan was quoted as saying. The UK lender is committed to a low-carbon world, though the global shift to such an environment is likely to be "long, hard and complex," Venkatakrishnan said, according to the report.

Barclays ( JJCTF ) didn't immediately respond to MT Newswires' request for comment.

(Market Chatter news is derived from conversations with market professionals globally. This information is believed to be from reliable sources but may include rumor and speculation. Accuracy is not guaranteed.)

Price: 9.04, Change: -0.05, Percent Change: -0.50