Dennis Pamlin discusses the necessary transformations and new opportunities in the global economy and finance sector to meet the objectives of the Paris Agreement. Much of the work in the financial system so far has focused on transparency and reducing risk and how such work can improve through better data and tougher criteria. However, in a rapidly changing world, the important question is how actions in the financial system support the concrete solutions needed in society and how they relate to what is needed for a 1.5°C compatible scenario, in particular a scenario with significant innovation and transformative system solutions, such as the IPCC’s Low-Energy-Demand (LED) pathway.