On the eve of President Biden’s Head of State Climate Summit, a new global alliance, chaired by Mark Carney (pictured), that brings together existing and new net-zero finance initiatives into one sector-wide strategic forum has been launched: The Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ).

GFANZ, chaired by Mark Carney, UN Special Envoy on Climate Action and Finance, unites over 160 firms (together responsible for assets in excess of $70tr) from the leading net-zero initiatives across the financial system to accelerate the transition to net-zero emissions by 2050 at the latest.

At the same time, 43 of the world’s leading banks have collaborated to form the UN-convened Net-Zero Banking Alliance. The new banking initiative becomes a founding member of the GFANZ alongside the pioneering UN-convened Net-Zero Asset Owner Alliance. The NZBA joins three existing initiatives: the UN-convened Net-Zero Asset Owner Alliance, the Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative, and the Paris Aligned Investor Initiative.

GFANZ will provide a forum for strategic coordination among the leadership of finance institutions from across the finance sector to accelerate the transition to a net-zero economy. All initiatives in GFANZ require signatories to set science-aligned interim and long-term goals to reach net-zero no later than 2050 in line with Race to Zero’s criteria.

UK Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, said: “Uniting the world’s banks and financial institutions behind the global transition to net-zero is crucial to unlocking the finance we need to get there – from backing pioneering firms and new technologies to building resilient economies around the world. The Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero will lead this charge ahead of COP26 to scale-up our ambition, accelerate our shift and help us to build back greener together.”

Some of the world’s leading insurers and reinsurers, are currently establishing the UN-convened Net-Zero Insurance Alliance (NZIA) under the auspices of UNEP FI’s Principles for Sustainable Insurance (PSI), building on their climate leadership as investors via the UN-convened Net-Zero Asset Owner Alliance. The seven companies involved in establishing the NZIA are AXA (Chair), Allianz, Aviva, Munich Re, SCOR, Swiss Re and Zurich Insurance Group. The NZIA has submitted a statement of intent to join the UN Race to Zero and become part of the GFANZ and is expected to be officially launched at COP26.

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