Kickstart your sustainable projects with Net Zero Financing
Sunrise Banks offers Net Zero Financing tailored for nonprofit, small business and commercial property owners and tenants undertaking projects that reduce or avoid carbon emissions.
Net Zero Financing could qualify you for a lower interest rate, making it more affordable to invest in energy-efficient upgrades and renewable energy solutions. These energy-saving improvements not only help lower your carbon footprint but can also deliver significant long-term cost savings for your organization.
Criteria for Net Zero Projects are third-party certified based on The Green Bond Principles.
Sunrise Banks Net Zero Financing Options:
Capital for supporting low-carbon, energy-efficient commercial projects
Sunrise Banks offers net zero commercial loans up to $12M for property owners and tenants of a non–profit or for-profit business (up to $20M for stabilized properties) to finance projects that reduce or avoid carbon emissions.
Eligible loans may include but are not limited to projects including:
- Energy reduction and efficiency updates such as insulation and HVAC
- Renewable energy such as solar, geothermal, and wind
- Green Building construction and renovation loans
- Developer or property owner of a certified green building
- Up to $12M (stabilized properties up to $20M)
- Clean transportation such as electric vehicles and charging infrastructure
- C-PACE (a state-led clean energy and energy efficiency program available to Minnesota-based commercial property owners)
What You Need to Get Started:
- 3 years of tax returns
- 3 years of financial statements
- Year-to-date financial statements, with prior year for comparison
- Debt schedule
- Total project cost and scope of sustainable upgrades
For small upgrades to bold transformations
Sunrise Banks offers loans between $5,000-$150,000 for property owners and tenants at a for-profit business to finance projects that reduce or avoid carbon emissions.
Eligible loans may include but are not limited to projects including:
- Energy efficiency updates such as lighting, insulation, and HVAC
- Renewable energy such as solar, battery storage, and geothermal
What You Need to Get Started:
- Articles and verification of SSN/EIN
- 2 years in business
- Estimated net worth
- Estimated monthly gross income
- Energy audit or type of sustainable upgrade (i.e., kWh of solar panels, make/model of HVAC system, etc.)
Advance your impact with Net Zero Financing designed to cut carbon and costs.
Sunrise Banks offers net zero loans $25,000-$150,000 for nonprofit property owners and nonprofit tenants to finance projects that reduce or avoid carbon emissions.
What You Need to Get Started:
- 3 years of tax returns or audited financials
- Energy audit or type of sustainable upgrade (i.e., kWh of solar panels, make/ model of HVAC system, etc.)
How to get started
Schedule a free energy audit to identify viable energy saving improvements.
- View our Net Zero Financing Framework for all eligible types of projects that could qualify for Net Zero Financing.
This framework has also been reviewed and validated by a second party firm, Sustainalytics. - Contact us below or reach out to Andy Carlson, VP, Senior Commercial Loan Officer, at [email protected] Off Site Link to learn more.
- We’ll guide you through the application process, explain potential interest rate benefits, and help integrate the audit findings into a project plan that supports long-term savings and environmental impact.
2025 Net Zero Banking Report
We’re proud to uphold our promise of transparency in ethical banking through this annual report illustrating the impact of our Net Zero Banking Program. This report covers the annual aggregated average dollar amount of Net Zero Deposits allocated to Net Zero Financing projects from January-December 2025. The total dollar amount designated to Net Zero Deposits grew by 70% during 2025, and the number of customers with accounts designated to Net Zero Deposits nearly tripled.
These deposits reduced and avoided a total of 494 tons of carbon dioxide, which is equivalent to powering approximately 103 single-family homes with clean electricity for a year.
Estimate the Impact of Switching Where You Bank
Every $1,000 you shift away from a carbon-intensive bank account into Net Zero Deposits bank account reduces 0.354 tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2e) per year. You can use this formula to get an estimate of your community decarbonization impact:
$ you have in the bank (in thousands) × -0.354 tCO2e = Your estimated comparative reduced emissions by shifting away from a carbon- intensive bank account
Consider where you are banking today.
Moving $10K from a carbon intensive bank account to a Net Zero Deposits account is equivalent to the direct emissions reduced by switching to an electric vehicle for a year.
Read the full report for more insights on how making a simple change at no cost — like switching where you bank — can elevate your sustainability approach from mere awareness to meaningful action.
Read the 2025 Net Zero Banking ReportFeatured Projects
Firefly: A Neighborhood Approach to Net Zero Living
Architect Adam Bradley Jonas and developer Jay Rajaratnam specialize in net zero buildings, tackling unique challenges. Today, on Grand Avenue in South Minneapolis, stands Firefly—their first fully sustainable apartment building, financed by the Sunrise Banks Net Zero Banking Program.
Read MoreBringing Sustainability to a Historic St. Paul Building
Pioneering a carbon-neutral construction project has challenges, including financing. The historic Brown-Jaspers Building at 2441 University Ave W., now 2441 Arts, features sustainable design enabled by Net Zero Banking.
Read MoreAddressing Climate Change with Minnesota’s first Multi-Family Passive House
Sunrise Banks is proud to fund construction of one of Minnesota’s first Passive House certified multi-family buildings. This project, Solstice Apartments, is a building with 23 low-carbon footprint apartments in the heart of northeast Minneapolis.
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