r/Futurology • u/RunAmbitious2593 • 3d ago

Economics Climate crisis on track to destroy capitalism, warns top insurer

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/apr/03/climate-crisis-on-track-to-destroy-capitalism-warns-allianz-insurer

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...

...Thallinger said it was a systemic risk “threatening the very foundation of the financial sector”, because a lack of insurance means other financial services become unavailable: “This is a climate-induced credit crunch.”

“This applies not only to housing, but to infrastructure, transportation, agriculture, and industry,” he said. “The economic value of entire regions – coastal, arid, wildfire-prone – will begin to vanish from financial ledgers. Markets will reprice, rapidly and brutally. This is what a climate-driven market failure looks like.”

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u/Gimme_The_Loot 3d ago

Didn't insurance companies first figure out the link between smoking and lung cancer (or at least higher death rates) if I recall?

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u/solidspacedragon 3d ago

Wouldn't surprise me. Honestly, you'd think that life insurance companies would be heavily promoting healthy living in the general population, so they made more money.

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u/guareber 3d ago

Modern ones do, or at least pretend to, through incentives tied to exercise tracked with fitness trackers and mindfulness apps.....

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u/nagi603 3d ago

mindfulness apps

Ah, yes, the philosophy of "please disregard the continuing exploitation and destruction, believe in that you cannot do anything to prevent us from getting richer on your demise. Especially do not think of any protesting; be content little cattle."

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u/guareber 3d ago

Yup, that's why I've never bothered. You can keep your "discount points".