UOB and CIMB vote for lower climate ambitions

Janice Lim, reporting for The Business Times a week ago:

Both UOB and CIMB – who are members of the Net-Zero Banking Alliance (NZBA) – told The Business Times that they will be accepting a proposal by the group to remove the requirement that signatories have to align their portfolios to the 1.5 deg C threshold. Their net-zero pledge will instead be replaced with a commitment to keep global warming to “well below 2 deg C”.

The vote comes as the climate group convened by the United Nations faces increasing pressure after a series of high-profile departures in recent months.

[…]

“We have stayed pragmatic, even as we are guided by the science in setting our net-zero targets and adopting internationally recognised climate models,” [UOB’s chief sustainability officer Eric Lim] added.

Being pragmatic means choosing convenience over principles. Banks are now so good at talking about the technicalities around climate, it’s hard to quibble with them. But in moments like this, we are reminded that they have never been ready to take the uncomfortable step of wielding their immense political power to demand inconvenient changes.