Mark Carney, the former central banker turned climate finance envoy, says the banking industry is about to deliver “hard numbers’’ to show it can wipe out its carbon footprint.
His grand project — to get big finance to commit to net-zero CO2 emissions by mid-century — has drawn in firms representing over $90 trillion, with more last-minute commitments expected to be unveiled at the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow this week.
Now, the challenge is to prove to the world that an industry that’s channeled trillions of dollars into fossil-fuel finance since the 2015 Paris accord can plausibly reform itself fast enough to avoid a climate catastrophe. Carney says the numbers will speak for themselves.
CGFI’s director Ben Caldecott comments: “We are still a very long way off. We urgently need new commitments at COP26 that amount to the most significant ever from financial institutions on climate, that demonstrate the collective intent for massive material change in future financial flows, and the widespread adoption of financial practices that actively support the transition to net zero at the pace and scale required.”
