Wall Street’s Dealmaking Leads Net-Zero Activists to Ax Playbook

In the summer of 2024, Alec Connon was a regular occupant of the small plaza in front of Citigroup Inc.’s Manhattan headquarters.

As a chief architect of a months-long, headline-grabbing protest against the bank’s funding of fossil-fuel companies he was to be found either in a human chain blocking the front door, holding a placard, or chanting, “Hey Citi, get off it, put planet over profit.”

Less than two years on, and Citigroup has increased its financing of fossil fuels through loans and bonds. In 2024, it ranked seventh among banks doing such deals. Last year, it had climbed ...