Differences over exiting economic stimuli, reforming banking system and fighting climate change are threatening to derail efforts of Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee and his G-20 counterparts as they met on Saturday in Scotland to pursue an agenda of sustainable economic growth.

Host Britain, still in the grip of recession, is keen to continue global effort to support recovery. Others, including the US, Japan and Germany, want to debate ending the massive government spending, low interest rates and expansion of the money supply measures employed to boost growth.

There are disagreements on banking reform, with Canadian Finance Minister Jim Flaherty acknowledging on the eve of the meeting that there were "disparate views" on how to address the problem of banks being too big to fail. France is pressing for more actions to stop excessive bonuses in the banking sector.

Addressing the finance ministers and central bankers from the 20 rich and developing nations, Britain's Chancellor of Exchequer Alistair Darling wanted them to agree on a financial package to help poorer nations develop green industries.

The EU, which has agreed to a euro 100-billion annual package of public and private finance by 2020, is urging the US to lay out its position.

With the major UN climate conference in Copenhagen a month away, he said "heavy lifting" was needed to push through a deal on so-called climate finance.