Canada’s six largest banks – BMO, CIBC, National Bank of Canada, RBC, Scotiabank, and TD – jointly announced that they are signing on to the Net-Zero Banking Alliance, placing Canada’s financial sector in the center of the multinational movement to promote and advance global climate goals through lending and investing activities.
The Net Zero Banking Alliance was launched in April 2021, with a group of banks committing to align operational and attributable emissions from their portfolios with pathways to net-zero by 2050 or sooner. The alliance has already grown to over 70 banks from 34 countries representing more than $47 trillion in assets, more than a quarter of global banking assets. The coalition forms part of the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ), along with the Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative, the Net-Zero Asset Owner Alliance and the Net Zero Financial Service Providers Alliance.
The announcement follows numerous ESGEnvironmental, social, and governance (ESG) criteria are a set of standards for a company’s operations that socially conscious investors use to screen potential investments. More initiatives and sustainable finance commitments recently launched by several of the Canadian banks, including sustainable finance commitments made by RBC, BMO and CIBC, Scotiabank’s establishment of a dedicated sustainable finance group, and TD’s pledge to achieve net zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated with its operations and financing activities by 2050.
Mark Carney, the UN Special Envoy, and Chair of GFANZ, and former Bank of Canada Governor, said:
“A transformation of the financial system to ensure a prosperous and just transition to net-zero is needed. Canadian banks, by joining NZBA and GFANZ, are bringing their deep expertise and strong balance sheets to drive solutions for the sustainable economy that Canada and the world needs.”
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