A global banking group that Prime Minister Mark Carney helped launch in 2021 to fight climate change has officially shut down.
The UN-backed Net-Zero Banking Alliance voted to end its membership model and will now leave its climate guidelines as a public reference instead. The decision means the alliance has stopped operating immediately.
Carney created the group in his role as UN Special Envoy for Climate Action and Finance ahead of the UN climate summit in Glasgow. At its peak, the alliance had more than 140 banks worldwide, including Canada’s Big Six, all pledging to set targets to cut emissions in the short and long term.
The banking group was part of the larger Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero, which aimed to get the financial sector on board with climate action.
But political pushback in the U.S. caused cracks. After Donald Trump returned to office last year, major American banks pulled out under Republican pressure. Canada’s largest banks soon followed, leaving the alliance in January while promising to keep pursuing climate goals on their own. More departures came later, including HSBC in July.
While the alliance is ending, the frameworks it developed—such as guidance for banks on how to set climate targets—will remain available. Work is still underway on how to continue climate finance efforts in the future.
