Arnold & Porter Discusses State Attorneys General Probes of Banks with Net-Zero Pledges

On October 19, 2022, 19 Republican state attorneys general (the AGs) launched a coordinated investigation by issuing civil investigative demands (CIDs) to six major US banks. The CIDs seek information related to the banks’ membership in the United Nations’ Net-Zero Banking Alliance (NZBA) and other climate-related initiatives. The NZBA is an alliance of 120 banks from 41 countries representing 39% of global banking assets. According to the NZBA commitment statement, member banks commit to transitioning their own operational greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and GHG emissions attributable to their lending and investment portfolios to align with pathways to net zero … Read more