Munich Re withdraws from prominent industry climate alliance

The UN-convened alliance's website says it is a group of 30 insurers and reinsurers, including Allianz and Axa, which collectively represent about 15% of world insurance premium volume globally. Munich Re was a founding member of the alliance, which was established in 2021.

German insurer Munich Re said on Friday it was withdrawing from an industry-wide alliance of insurers focused on reducing carbon emissions, though it pledged to stick to its own climate targets.

Munich Re said it would exit the Net-Zero Insurance Alliance to avoid antitrust risks. The UN-convened alliance's website says it is a group of 30 insurers and reinsurers, including Allianz and Axa, which collectively represent about 15% of world insurance premium volume globally.

Munich Re was a founding member of the alliance, which was established in 2021. "It is more effective to pursue our climate ambition to reduce global warming individually," said Joachim Wenning, CEO of Munich Re.

Neither the alliance nor the current chair immediately responded to requests for comment. Munich Re is ranked among the top 10 of some 30 insurers in a scorecard by Insure our Future, which tracks the climate ambitions of major insurers.

"If the more progressive are ones are getting out, I would think it might be quite a threat to the alliance," said Regine Richter of the activist Urgewald. Insurers have been under pressure to limit doing business with dirty industries.

A group of climate activists last week sent a letter to 30 insurance company CEOs, asking them to "immediately" stop underwriting new fossil fuel projects in the wake of a stark climate warning from U.N. scientists. Recipients included Munich Re, Zurich Insurance and AXA.

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