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https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/apr/03/climate-crisis-on-track-to-destroy-capitalism-warns-allianz-insurer>
"The climate crisis is on track to destroy capitalism, a top insurer has
warned, with the vast cost of extreme weather impacts leaving the financial
sector unable to operate.
The world is fast approaching temperature levels where insurers will no longer
be able to offer cover for many climate risks, said Günther Thallinger, on the
board of Allianz SE, one of the world’s biggest insurance companies. He said
that without insurance, which is already being pulled in some places, many
other financial services become unviable, from mortgages to investments.
Global carbon emissions are still rising and current policies will result in a
rise in global temperature between 2.2C and 3.4C above pre-industrial levels.
The damage at 3C will be so great that governments will be unable to provide
financial bailouts and it will be impossible to adapt to many climate impacts,
said Thallinger, who is also the chair of the German company’s investment board
and was previously CEO of Allianz Investment Management.
The core business of the insurance industry is risk management and it has long
taken the dangers of global heating very seriously. In recent reports, Aviva
said extreme weather damages for the decade to 2023 hit $2tn, while GallagherRE
said the figure was $400bn in 2024. Zurich said it was “essential” to hit net
zero by 2050.
Thallinger said: “The good news is we already have the technologies to switch
from fossil combustion to zero-emission energy. The only thing missing is speed
and scale. This is about saving the conditions under which markets, finance,
and civilisation itself can continue to operate.”
Nick Robins, the chair of the Just Transition Finance Lab at the London School
of Economics, said: “This devastating analysis from a global insurance leader
sets out not just the financial but also the civilisational threat posed by
climate change. It needs to be the basis for renewed action, particularly in
the countries of the global south.”
“The insurance sector is a canary in the coalmine when it comes to climate
impacts,” said Janos Pasztor, former UN assistant secretary-general for climate
change."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
