Global reinsurance giant Swiss Re is the latest company to announce it is leaving the Net-Zero Insurance Alliance (NZIA), becoming the fourth major re/insurer to do so.
Swiss Re was a founder member when the Net-Zero Insurance Alliance (NZIA) was launched at the G20 Climate Summit in Venice in 2021.
At that time, the CEO of the company said that the co-founder of the Alliance is a way to “work with other reinsurers and insurers to build its commitment to the transition to a low-carbon economy, through its underwriting expertise,” while saying the NZAI is a “logical next step in the race to net zero.”
Fast forward to 2023 and departures from the NZIA appear to be accelerating, with major insurance and reinsurance industry names leaving the Alliance, some citing a concern over whether antitrust-related issues could emerges as the market advances its net-zero agenda, in the face of US lawmakers pushing back on some ESG initiatives of late.
As we reported last week, pressure on NZIA members is mounting and a consortium of Republican state attorneys general (AG) has written to insurers in the Net-Zero Insurance Alliance (NZIA), raising their concerns about legality of their commitments to cooperate. with other insurers and asset owners to “advance an activist climate agenda.”
In announcing that it is withdrawing from the Net-Zero Insurance Alliance (NZIA) with immediate effect today, Swiss Re said, “Our commitment to our sustainability strategy remains unchanged.”
Which is the same sentiment as other reinsurers also expressed, that despite leaving the Alliance, there is no change in their mission to push towards sustainable practices and a net-zero world.
Back in April, German reinsurance giant Hannover Re announced that after careful consideration, it chose to leave NZIA, making it the third high-profile re/insurer to leave the UN-convened alliance of the left It’s been a month.
While Hannover Re did not give a detailed reason for leaving NZIA, Munich Re previously highlighted antitrust concerns as limiting the scope of its decarbonization goals when it announced it was leaving the Alliance, while Zurich noted the a desire to focus its resources to support. its customers when they move to its notice.
Today, three of the co-founding members have left NZIA, Munich Re, Swiss Re and Zurich, as well as one of the world’s largest reinsurance companies.
Whether it is possible to sustain the Alliance with a shrinking membership remains to be seen, but we should expect all companies to continue to pursue their own net-zero and sustainability goals regardless.
