On January 9, 2025, BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager with about $11.5 trillion under management, said it would leave the Net Zero Asset Managers initiative (NZAM). Days later, the initiative said it was pausing its activities.
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BlackRock said that its membership had “caused confusion regarding BlackRock’s practices and subjected us to legal inquiries from various public officials.” Reuters reported that the decision came under pressure from Republican politicians.
The initiative
NZAM was founded in 2020. Its members commit to supporting the goal of net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 or sooner. Before BlackRock left, it had more than 325 signatories managing about $57.5 trillion. On January 13, it said it was suspending its activities, including tracking signatories’ progress, and removed its member list from its website.
Wider pattern
Several US banks and asset managers had also left climate alliances in late 2024 and early 2025. BlackRock said it remained committed to managing climate-related risks in its investment strategies.
Editor’s note: an earlier version of this article included unsourced statements about BlackRock’s sustainable investments and about other firms. It has been rewritten to report the withdrawal and the sourced context.
Sources
- Reuters, Exclusive: Investor climate group suspends activities after BlackRock exit (13 January 2025): https://investing.com/news/stock-market-news/exclusiveinvestor-climate-group-suspends-activities-after-blackrock-exit-3810071
- Reuters via Business & Human Rights Resource Centre, Net-Zero Asset Managers suspends its activities after BlackRock quits the coalition (13 January 2025): https://www.business-humanrights.org/en/latest-news/net-zero-asset-managers-nzam-suspends-its-activities-after-blackrock-quits-the-coalition
- Ballotpedia News, BlackRock leaves net-zero alliance; NZAM suspends operations (16 January 2025): https://news.ballotpedia.org/2025/01/16/blackrock-leaves-net-zero-alliance-nzam-suspends-operations/
- Earth.org, BlackRock quits major net zero alliance ahead of Trump inauguration (13 January 2025): https://earth.org/blackrock-quits-major-net-zero-alliance-ahead-of-trump-inauguration-as-number-of-wall-street-lenders-shying-away-from-sustainability-efforts-grows/