PCAF launches the 2nd version of the Global GHG Accounting and Reporting Standard for the Financial Industry

UTRECHT, NETHERLANDS – 14 December 2022 –

The Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials (PCAF) launched the 2^nd version of the Global GHG Accounting and Reporting Standard for Financed Emissions. This version is an update of the Financed Emissions Standard published in 2020 and includes a new methodology for sovereign debt, and guidance on how to measure financed emissions related to GHG emission removals.

Download the 2^nd version of the Standard

Responding to industry demand for a global, standardized GHG accounting and reporting approach, PCAF developed the Global GHG Accounting and Reporting Standard for the Financial Industry, focusing on measuring and reporting financed emissions. Published in November 2020, the standard provides detailed methodological guidance to measure and disclose GHG emissions associated with six asset classes: listed equity and corporate bonds, business loans, and unlisted equity, project finance, commercial real estate, mortgages, and motor vehicle loans.

Since then, PCAF signatories have asked to expand the standard to include more methods covering other financial activities. From 2021 onwards, PCAF started the work on three parts under the umbrella of the Global GHG Accounting and Reporting Standard for the Financial Industry:

• Part A – Financed Emissions: update of the first version standard on measuring and reporting financed emissions by adding a method for sovereign debt and guidance to account for emission removals;
• Part B – Facilitated Emissions: development of a standard for measuring and reporting the GHG emissions associated with the capital markets transactions;
• Part C – Insurance-Associated Emissions: development of a standard for measuring and reporting the GHG emissions associated to re/insurance underwriting.

For Part A, 22 PCAF participants volunteered to develop a method for sovereign debt and guidance to account for emission removals: ABN AMRO, AIMCo, Amalgamated Bank, Banco Pichincha, Bank of America, Barclays, Blackrock, Boston Common Asset Management, CDC, CTBC Holding, Deutsche Bank, Federated Hermes, FirstRand, FMO, Hannon Armstrong, HSBC, Landsbankinn, Morgan Stanley, Produbanco, Robeco, Triodos Bank, and the UN-convened Net-Zero Asset Owner Alliance.

The launch of the PCAF Standard comes after public consultation and gathering feedback from financial institutions, sustainable finance stakeholder groups, policymakers, data providers, consultants, and civil society organizations.

Accompanying the launch of the 2^nd version of the Standard, a virtual launch event will take place December 20^th at 9:30 ET | 15:30 CET. The event will be co-hosted by members from the sovereign bonds and emission removals working groups who supported the development of the new methodology and guidance. On behalf of the sovereign bonds working group, we welcome Michael Heilmann, Investment Strategist in Emerging Markets from Allianz and Sam Nierop, Senior Impact officer at FMO will present the outcomes of the emission removals guidance.

We are pleased to invite all interested stakeholders to register for the virtual launch event.

Register for the virtual launch event

Part B of the Global GHG Accounting and Reporting Standard for the Financial Industry, the Facilitated Emissions Standard, will be launched separately in early 2023.

Part C of the Global GHG Accounting and Reporting Standard for the Financial Industry, the Insurance-Associated Emissions Standard, was launched in November 2022.

As part of the PCAF initiative, over 345 financial institutions, representing over $85 trillion in total assets, have committed to measuring and reporting the greenhouse gas emissions associated with loans, investments, insurance liabilities, and other financial products and services. The PCAF Standard is a key resource for them – and the wider financial sector – in advancing their climate goals

About The Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials (PCAF)

The Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials (PCAF) was launched globally in September 2019. Currently, more than 345 financial institutions have subscribed to the PCAF initiative. PCAF signatories work together to jointly develop the Global GHG Accounting and Reporting Standard for the Financial Industry to measure and disclose the greenhouse gas emissions of their loans, investments, insurance liabilities and other financial products and services. By doing so, PCAF signatories take an important step to assess climate-related risks, set targets in line with the Paris Climate Agreement, and develop effective strategies to decarbonize our society.

Learn more at: https://carbonaccountingfinanc...

***For more information, please contact:

Angélica Afanador

Executive Director, PCAF

info@carbonaccountingfinancials.com

For PCAF Technical Assistance questions, please contact:

ta@carbonaccountingfinancials.com

For PCAF Database questions, please contact:

database@carbonaccountingfinancials.com