Net zero investor coalition relaunches after BlackRock exit

The Net Zero Asset Managers (NZAM) initiative has relaunched with more than 250 signatories, marking a scaled-back return for one of the investment industry’s flagship climate alliances.

The group suspended operations in January 2025 days after BlackRock – the world’s largest asset manager – exited amid mounting US scrutiny of ESG initiatives following Donald Trump’s re-election.

At its peak, NZAM had more than 325 members overseeing $57.5tn. The new iteration is smaller, more European, explicitly voluntary, and less focused directly on abating carbon emissions.

Rebecca Mikula-Wright, chair of NZAM’s steering committee, said in a statement that the initiative would continue to provide a platform for managers to demonstrate how they address climate-related financial risks and opportunities in a “rapidly changing regulatory and market environment”.

Signatories to the updated commitment include Amundi, Aberdeen Investments, UBS Asset Management, Legal & General Investment Management and the European arms of T. Rowe Price and Wellington Management.

A weaker mandate

The new NZAM framework has been watered down somewhat.

The updated commitment statement reduces required actions from 10 to seven, emphasises that targets are set independently and highlights managers’ “individual contexts” and fiduciary duties.

NZAM now describes itself as a voluntary disclosure platform rather than a coordinating body tracking implementation.

The language around climate has also softened.

Early iterations of NZAM focused on portfolio decarbonisation aligned with the Paris Agreement goal of limiting global warming and reaching net zero emissions by 2050.

Signatories now frame their approach more broadly around transition finance, climate solutions and resilience, reflecting a move away from narrow emissions metrics toward capital allocation across the energy transition.

"The new statement reflects the evolution of climate investing from an original focus on decarbonising portfolios, towards a broader set of approaches that includes decarbonisation alongside, transition investing, climate solutions, adaptation and resilience," said Dan Grandage, chief sustainable investment officer at Aberdeen Investments.

US pressure

The changes follow legal and political pressure in the US, including congressional inquiries and lawsuits alleging that collective climate action by investors could distort energy markets.

NZAM last year removed members’ targets and stopped monitoring implementation pending a strategic review.