By David Reiling, Chair, Global Alliance for Banking on Values & CEO, Sunrise Banks (USA)
Foreword to the 2024 Annual Report by the Chair of the Global Alliance for Banking on Values
As Chair of our global community of values-based banks, as well as the CEO of a values-based bank in the United States, I have been privileged to witness creative, energetic and effective efforts to use finance to build a fairer, greener and more resilient economy during another year of rapid change.
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GABV members have benefited from opportunities, either regional or global, in person or online, to convene and collaborate. None were more important than the GABV’s annual meeting in Italy in the Spring, graciously hosted by pioneering Italian ethical bank, Banca Etica.
The meeting focused on the power of technology to deliver positive change and converging opportunities to use finance for good; our discussions the catalyst for a series of webinars for CEOs during the rest of the year focused on the opportunities and risks of Artificial Intelligence. During the meeting members made ‘transformational commitments’ aligned with the new pillar of the 2027 GABV Strategy: Transformation. A theme echoed in Banking on Values Day late in the year, successfully promoting our work to wider audiences.
I was delighted that the GABV increased our movement’s voice and visibility during 2024. We were the first financial network to endorse the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty, initiated the ‘Milan Declaration: A Statement for Peace,’ and actively participated in key events such as COP29, widely regarded as the world’s most significant—albeit controversial—climate conference.
Whether arguing for a binding global treaty to wean ourselves off fossil fuels or choosing not to finance an industry that perpetuates conflict (none of our members finance weapons of war), these issues demonstrate in grounded, concrete ways, the positive power of values-based banking to bring about lasting change.
I was also inspired by the direct testimony of our friends and members across the network itself in 2024. In particular, I was humbled to learn how Bank of Palestine has continued to operate and serve its communities during a year of unimaginable challenge. Resilience will be a key theme during 2025 and I look forward to learning again from our richly diverse community of banks and credit unions.
Whatever challenges an inevitably changing world brings, our movement has shown it can meet them with courage, skill and imagination. I want to extend my sincere thanks to our members, supporting partners, Board and Secretariat, as well as our broader stakeholders worldwide, for continuing to drive this crucial work forward.
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