Citigroup vowed to finance $250bn for clients on environmental initiatives over the next five years, the latest big commitment by a major investment bank as firms look to prove their green credentials amid an expected surge in deals in this area after the coronavirus pandemic.

The US bank has set ambitious targets for what it has dubbed the “transition to the low-carbon economy” including a financing aim to more than double the $100bn it raised for climate initiatives in the previous five years.