Since 2015, PCAF members (i.e. commercial banks, development banks, asset owners/managers, insurance companies, etc.) have been actively collaborating to develop and implement greenhouse gas (GHG) accounting in their organizations.

All financial institutions have experienced great value in assessing and disclosing their GHG emissions of their loans and investments, as this triggers a institution-wide discussion on climate change and the role of the financial institution to facilitate the transition towards a low-carbon society.

Shaping the climate action journey for financial institutions

Measuring the financed emissions of a portfolio is the foundation enabling financial institutions to perform scenario analysis, set targets, inform actions and disclose progress. These areas jointly are crucial for portfolio alignment and decarbonization.

PCAF developed the Strategic Framework for Paris Alignment to help financial institutions understand the process of Paris alignment and navigate through the cluster of climate initiatives to understand their purpose, focus, and role in each step of the journey. The Strategic Framework provides an overview of open, global and collaborative climate finance initiatives. Understanding this landscape will help financial institutions at different levels of progress to identify the most efficient support available to scale their climate efforts.

Download the Strategic Framework for Paris Alignment (PDF, 2.1 MB)

“Our experience in the Netherlands is that measuring and tracking climate impact drives concrete action and change. [...] PCAF helped us understand that our nearly 800,000 residential mortgages are one of the areas that have the highest carbon impact. With that knowledge, we now promote mortgages that incentivize customers to take energy efficiency measures. Climate action like that is not only good for business - but is a duty to our clients, the planet, and to future generations.”

Kees van Dijkhuizen, former CEO, ABN AMRO