Four global banks will next month launch a pilot platform for buying and selling voluntary carbon credits. A private sector task force on scaling up the voluntary carbon market said earlier this year the market will need to grow 15-fold to meet goals, that is set under the Paris climate agreement and that could be worth $5-$50 billion by 2030.
Britain’s NatWest Group, Canada’s Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, Australia’s National Australia Bank and Brazil’s Itaú Unibanco said that their Project Carbon initiative would help to create a more liquid market for carbon offsets. They also help clients to manage risks associated with climate costs. Alison Rose, chief executive officer of NatWest Group said that the climate change is one of the most important challenges of their time. They are helping their business and personal banking customers to understand and reduce their carbon footprints through partnerships like Project Carbon.
This platform will enable buyers to fully trace which projects the carbon credits have come from and act as a record of ownership of the credits. It will also look at how blockchain technology can be used to trade credits and help to make the market more accessible to customers. The banks said that the team is keen to invite like-minded institutions to join the cohort to help deliver a shared service platform, that the group believes will be fundamental to the scaling of the Voluntary Carbon Market.
