Bankers association commits to climate neutrality

The Liechtenstein Bankers Association (LBV) is joining the UN-convened Net-Zero Banking Alliance as a supporting organization according to a press release. With this, it is committing to climate neutrality by 2030. Operating emissions must be reduced to net zero by then. All preventable emissions should be offset, largely through involvement in reforestation projects.

LBV has set itself three interim targets for this: by 2023, it aims to reduce its CO2 emissions by 25 percent versus the base year of 2019; paper consumption is to be halved by 2023 compared with the base year of 2019; and the association plans to only use renewable energy by 2023.

Furthermore, LBV will approach its member banks and support their participation in the Net-Zero Banking Alliance. With LGT Group in April, LLB in August and VP Bank in September all three major Liechtenstein banks have already entered the alliance. However, the aim is for other member banks to join the alliance as well. Additionally, the association plans to actively participate in the country’s political dialog in order to set net-zero targets on a national level.

The association writes that Liechtenstein occupies a leading position among banking centre that have given a clear timescale for net zero with regard to asset management at over 85 percent.