Change Gfanz to save it

Investor alliance must reconcile push for decarbonisation with responsibility to maximise returns for clients

A widely circulated report in mid-January chastises Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (Gfanz) members for continuing to lend to coal and, oil and gas development. The attack is misguided, in my view, but it strikes at the core of what could prove to be an existential challenge to the alliance. Formed in 2021, Gfanz has more than 550 signatories managing over $130tn in assets. It was created by the financial community in order to help decarbonise the global economy. But the alliance, which should be incredibly useful, is in a pickle—and one of its own making. The alliance’s relationship to funding fossil fuel development was always somewhat contentious. But when the UN-backed Race to Ze