JPMorgan Chase & Co. is parting ways with its global head of corporate advisory as part of a reshuffle in which the bank will merge its climate advisory with broader energy services.
Rama Variankaval, who’s been with JPMorgan for 23 years, is leaving this month, a spokesperson for the bank told Bloomberg. Going forward, Variankaval’s specialist team advising clients on how to tackle the low-carbon transition will be merged with services targeting a range of energy themes, as AI and geopolitics reshape demand.
Like many of its peers, JPMorgan is adapting to a world shaped by soaring demand for energy, as well as by growing anxiety about the implications of artificial intelligence and warfare. Against that backdrop, focus on Wall Street has moved away from pandemic-era net-zero talk to the goal of financing energy supply, as bankers navigate economies buffeted by technological and geopolitical shocks.
“We’re building something genuinely new here,” said Heather Zichal, who will head JPMorgan’s newly formed center for energy and environment, in addition to continuing as global head of sustainability.
“Bringing our energy, climate and policy expertise together helps us meet clients where the hard problems are,” she said in an emailed comment to Bloomberg. “The world needs more energy, and meeting that demand while balancing affordability, security, reliability and sustainability is one of the defining economic opportunities of our era and I’m energized by the work ahead.”
Variankaval declined to comment.
After the adjustments, Sarah Kapnick, a former chief scientist at the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, will continue to run JPMorgan’s climate advisory business, which will remain inside the commercial and investment bank, the spokesperson said.
Among Variankaval’s roles at JPMorgan was the creation of its center for carbon transition, which developed its climate strategy and still provides financing for clients transitioning to lower-carbon business models. The unit, which today is overseen by Vijnan Batchu, will become part of the center for energy and the environment now run by Zichal.
While at JPMorgan, Variankaval urged caution around some of the trends linked to the low-carbon transition. Last year, he said he was worried that the supply of nuclear power would fall short of some investor expectations. He also warned against applying a Silicon Valley venture-capital investment model to clean tech, noting that the amounts of money required for green companies to grow tend to be considerably bigger than for traditional tech startups.
“We thank him for his leadership,” the JPMorgan spokesperson said by email. “He played an important role in advancing the firm’s sustainability and climate efforts.”
Variankaval’s exit follows the departure of Chuka Umunna, its former global head of sustainable solutions. Umunna has since taken on a role with Citigroup Inc.’s investment banking team.
