Private Financial Institutions Commitments to Paris Alignment

The Climate Policy Initiative analyzed public climate commitments from over 350 private financial institutions across four sectors. While assets committed to net zero have grown to over USD 93 trillion, the report finds a significant lack of interim targets, detailed transition plans, and comprehensive fossil fuel phase-out strategies.

• As of the report's release, at least 301 major financial institutions have committed to achieving net zero by 2050 at the latest, representing USD 93.3 trillion in financial assets. This reflects significant growth in 2021, with 65% of global assets under management and 17% of global financial assets now covered by such commitments.
• Despite the increase in net zero commitments, there is a lack of specific implementation details. Only 10% of entities with net zero targets have published public interim emission reduction targets, and none of the sampled entities provided details on the timing or method of using carbon offsets.
• Cumulative investments pledged to climate solutions by 2030 are tracked at almost USD 6 trillion, nearly double current private finance trends. However, these pledges often lack detail regarding target regions and sectors, and historically have not been directed toward hard-to-abate sectors or developing economies.
• Divestment and exclusion policies are primarily focused on coal, but often use broad thresholds that still allow for the financing of coal projects. There is a lack of a comprehensive global shift away from oil and gas financing, with most efforts limited to specific locations like tar sands or Arctic drilling.

APA

Climate Policy Initiative (2021). Private Financial Institutions Commitments to Paris Alignment. https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/publication/private-financial-institutions-commitments-to-paris-alignment/

Chicago

Climate Policy Initiative. Private Financial Institutions Commitments to Paris Alignment. 2021. https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/publication/private-financial-institutions-commitments-to-paris-alignment/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Climate Policy Initiative |title=Private Financial Institutions Commitments to Paris Alignment |date=18 October 2021 |url=https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/publication/private-financial-institutions-commitments-to-paris-alignment/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{climatepolicyinitiative2021private, author = {{Climate Policy Initiative}}, title = {{Private Financial Institutions Commitments to Paris Alignment}}, institution = {Climate Policy Initiative}, year = {2021}, month = oct, url = {https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/publication/private-financial-institutions-commitments-to-paris-alignment/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }