The end of opus DEI

It took less than two months after the presidential elections for USA Inc to begin scrambling to underline, or at least modify, its anti-woke credentials in readiness for the business opportunities of Donald Trump's regime.

- KANIKA DATTA

Among the earliest off the blocks, in January this year was BlackRock, the world's largest asset management company, which exited the Net Zero Asset Managers' Initiative, a five-year-old global group of asset managers committed to supporting investment aligned with the goal of net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 if not earlier. NZAM is a former partner to the UN's Race to Zero campaign.

BlackRock's withdrawal, reportedly under pressure from Republican politicians, has left NZAM in disarray. In a letter to its members seen by Reuters, it stated that it had decided to conduct a review of its activities during which it was "suspending activities to track signatory implementation and reporting. NZAM will also remove the commitment statement and list of NZAM signatories from its website, as well as their targets and related case studies pending the outcome of the review." That's another way of saying goodbye to green investments, after one of the hottest years on record.

This retreat should come as no surprise. Western investors have had their fingers on the political winds for some time — witness the insidious evasions over commitments to private capital to mitigation and adaptation projects at serial climate change meets. BlackRock, in fact, is not an exception nor a trendsetter. In February last year, another green asset management initiative Climate Action 100+ reported the departures of JP Morgan Asset Management, State Street Global Advisors, and PIMCO.