The move by Canada’s biggest financial institutions to walk away from the UN-backed Net-Zero Banking Alliance has many Gen Z people pondering a breakup with their bank, though some admit convenience is a stumbling block.
The shrinking alliance was designed to support the energy transition away from fossil fuels. In January 2025, BMO, National Bank, TD Bank Group, CIBC, Scotiabank and RBC followed six of the largest financial institutions in the U.S. and left the alliance ahead of President Donald Trump taking office.
A 2023 survey found that 46 per cent of Gen Z Canadians decided to pay more for a product in the last six months because it had a lower climate impact. But the convenience of bank is a complicating factor.
Stefanja Ottier, a political science and journalism student at Carleton University, said she has a savings account with TD Bank but moved her chequing account to Simplii Financial when she was 16, because of their no-fee policy. Simplii Financial is a division of CIBC.
“It would take a lot of work to move my savings away from [TD], because my whole family is involved with them,” she said. But she is trying to limit the number of financial products she uses at the bank.
“I’m not looking to get a credit card with them because of this.”
Mustafa Amin, 25, a finance student at uOttawa, banks with RBC. He said the institution leaving the alliance is not enough to make him consider switching. Still, he finds it “concerning” to see this alliance breaking down in North America.
Canadian banks have said they are not abandoning their climate initiatives.
“We will continue to focus our efforts on supporting our clients to help them address climate change and succeed in the transition to a low-carbon and resilient economy,” said RBC spokesman Andrew Block in a media statement.
Amin said he is skeptical of the longevity of these commitments.
“Time is really going to show us if these companies are going to uphold their climate initiatives and their green initiatives. If they don’t, that would … be extremely disappointing,” he said.
University of Ottawa student Quinn Trudeau also said the move away from the alliance left him with a negative feeling about his bank.
“But it’s not that much to make me go through the effort of completely switching,” said Trudeau.
But the 21 year old, who is interested in investing and studies business technology management and finance at uOttawa, said he considers environmental, social and governance (ESG) when choosing which companies to invest in.
ESG is a framework some companies use to factor risk, such as climate change into business practices.
“You look at the really, really, really scummy companies – they usually fall at some point,” said Trudeau, who said he worked on climate advocacy in high school.
Trudeau may be an outlier when it comes to investing. Olaf Weber, a professor at York University’s Schulich School of Business, said there are knowledge barriers for young people to get into sustainable investing.
A recent Prosperity Index study found 70 per cent of Gen Zs agreed that, “I know it’s important to invest, but I don’t know how to invest.”
“For many people, it’s hard to understand why [sustainable finance] is even important – that the banks have such a big impact on financing the economy, and therefore, a cleaner, or not clean economy,” Weber said.
Weber suggests young climate-conscious people looking at getting into investing consider products as ESG or socially responsible funds.
“Really have a look at what the products and services are,” he advised.
Breaking up
But for some who have taken a hard look at their habits, the breakdown of this alliance is enough to spark a change.
Martha Capener, 21, president of uOttawa Climate Justice, banks with CIBC and uses Edward Jones for asset management. She said she intend to move her money to a credit union.
Additionally, although she said all the funds she’s invested in are ethical in some way, she wants to do a deep dive into her portfolio to ensure there are no indirect ties to fossil fuels.
“It’s looking at it at a micro level about what tangible actions you can do.”
Grace Jeffries, 21, a fellow executive at uOttawa Climate Justice, which has long advocated to get RBC off uOttawa’s campus, said they also plan on switching to a credit union from TD Bank after hearing the news.
“I learned a lot about credit unions from following Climate Justice uOttawa throughout the years of going to school here,” they said.
As a past initiative, Capener and Jeffries’ club also successfully got uOttawa’s student union to switch to a credit union.
“I think a lot of students care about ethical investing when it comes to universities, and so I think there really is … momentum,” Capener said.
Alex Walker, the climate finance program manager at Environmental Defence, said the breakdown of this alliance demonstrates the limits of voluntary initiatives. They argued that big banks owe climate action to younger generations.
“If the banks aren’t supporting that transition through addressing climate change, they’re opening up this big financial risk, which is an issue for young people who want their money and their savings, pensions, and investments to be safe in the long-term,” Walker said.
