The Global GHG Accounting and Reporting Standard for the Financial Industry

The Global GHG Accounting and Reporting Standard, developed by the PCAF Global Core Team, is comprised of three parts, A, B and C. 

Part A - Financed Emissions provides detailed methodological guidance to measure and disclose GHG emissions associated with seven asset classes as well as guidance on emission removals:

Listed equity and corporate bonds Business loans and unlisted equity Project finance Commercial real estate Mortgages Motor vehicle loans

Part B – Facilitated Emissions provides methodological guidance for measuring and reporting the GHG emissions associated with the capital markets transactions (to be launched in early 2023);

Part C – Insurance-Associated Emissions provides methodological guidance for measuring and reporting the GHG emissions associated to re/insurance underwriting.

As the Standard and PCAF evolve, additional asset classes and case studies will be added to the Standard.
Using this Standard equips financial institutions with harmonized, robust methods to measure financed emissions, a metric that enables them to:

  • Assess climate-related risks in line with the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD).
  • Set science-based targets (SBTs) using the sectoral decarbonization approach developed by the Science Based Targets initiative.
  • Report to stakeholders like the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP).
  • Inform climate strategies and actions to develop innovative financial products that support the transition toward a net-zero emissions economy.

Part A - Financed Emissions:

Download part A - Financed Emissions 2nd edition (2022)
Download part A - Financed Emissions (Executive Summary)

The previous version of the Global GHG Accounting and Reporting Standard is available for reference: Part A – Financed emissions 1st edition (2019)

Built on GHG Protocol

Built On GHG Protocol

The first edition of this Financed Emissions Standard has been reviewed by the GHG Protocol and is in conformance with the requirements set forth in the Corporate Value Chain (Scope 3) Accounting and Reporting Standard, for Category 15 investment activities. The newly added sovereign debt methodology and guidance on emission removals in this second edition are pending GHG Protocol review and approval.

Part C - Insurance-Associated Emissions:

Download part C - Insurance-Associated Emissions
Download part C - Insurance-Associated Emissions (Executive Summary)

Download and read the Frequently Asked Questions about Insurance-Associated Emissions (pdf).

Watch the Standard Launch recording

Watch the Insurance-Associated Emissions Standard Launch

Global Core Team

The Global Core Team develops and writes the Standard.

22 PCAF participants volunteered to form the PCAF Core Team to co-create the Global GHG Accounting and Reporting Standard for the Financial Industry with the ultimate goal of harmonizing GHG accounting and reporting.

The following institutions are part of the core team.

Core Team logos

Regional implementation

Regional implementation teams feed the development of the Global GHG Accounting and Reporting Standard for the Financial Industry through local collaboration.

The PCAF Standard is being implemented in five regions: Africa, Asia-Pacific, Europe, Latin America and North America. Each region has regional implementation teams with a clear governance structure.

Each team receives technical assistance to implement GHG accounting and reporting at no cost. The lessons learned through the regional implementation feed into the refinement of the Global GHG Accounting and Reporting Standard for the Financial Industry.

[...] In order for banks to reduce their impact on global warming, we need to be able to measure what that impact actually is. We recognize the Dutch  founders for initiating the open-sourced methodology that PCAF provides as a major step forward. Amalgamated Bank is proud to be a part of this first-of-its-kind partnership and we hope to be joined by many more banks in this endeavor.

Keith Mestrich, CEO Amalgamated Bank

Teams

Via the pages below you can access downloads and other resources made available by the the regional implementation teams.