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ACX and Sylvera partner to broaden access to high-quality carbon credit investment and trading

Published

1 year ago

December 6, 2023

Carbon data provider and exchange collaborate to launch a standardized contract of highly-rated carbon credits, promoting quality in the market.
The credits will be available for trading on ACX’s exchange.
It is the first step in the partnership as the two companies team up to bring further transparency and improve accessibility in carbon credit trading.

ABU DHABI, UAE and SINGAPORE and LONDON, Dec. 6, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — ACX, the leading environmental markets exchange, has partnered with Sylvera, a leading carbon data provider, to develop the first standardized contract of high-quality carbon credits rated A-AAA available to trade on ACX’s exchange.

Purchasing carbon credits, which fund projects around the world like protecting rainforests from deforestation or degradation, is one of the most established and scalable ways to channel finance to effective climate outcomes. ACX’s SYLVERA ‘A’ Nature Tonne (SAN) contract accepts only carbon credits from Sylvera’s highest-rated projects — A and above (AA & AAA) with co-benefits score of three and above — giving buyers confidence that they are investing in credits high in environmental integrity. In addition, the contract ensures projects comply with social and environmental safeguards, reducing complexities and simplifying decision-making in the trading process. The nature-based carbon credits will be from REDD+, Afforestation, Reforestation, and Restoration (ARR), and Improved Forest Management (IFM) projects of all vintages.

The partnership comes at a critical juncture for carbon credits. As targets for net zero reach ever closer, the carbon markets are poised for significant growth, with some estimating it will reach $250bn by 2030. However, investors need robust, unconflicted information and accurate impact assessment of these carbon credits. This standardized contract is a first of its kind, giving buyers a scalable way to access high-quality carbon credits. Assessed against Sylvera’s rigorous project evaluation methodologies and cutting-edge technology and held by a secure and regulated exchange, buyers can direct more funding to the projects having maximum climate impact.

The collaboration is the first step in the partnership between the two companies to build innovative solutions that increase transparency and drive simplicity in carbon trading.

Sam Gill, Co-Founder and President at Sylvera, said, “Exchanges like ACX have a critical role to play in providing investors with more robust data and information at the point of decision making to ensure the effectiveness of climate action investments and measure and benchmark progress against net zero targets. Together, we can build a more transparent, comprehensible, and high-quality voluntary carbon market that drives forward real climate impact.”

Wei Mei Hum, Global Head of Environmental Products at ACX, said, “We have observed that the market has been on the search for ‘High-Quality Carbon Credits’ for over two years, but with a practical way of identifying such credits eluding most buyers, barring those with the specialized expertise or access to in-depth information on projects. Partnering with Sylvera has allowed for the creation of a standardized contract aligned with Sylvera’s rigorous ratings methodology. It provides assurance to the market that they will be accessing a grade of truly high-quality credits derived from projects assessed based not only on environmental integrity but also their co-benefits. We hope that the SAN contract will further precipitate the scaling up of truly high-quality VCM.”

About Sylvera

Sylvera is a leading carbon data provider on a mission to incentivize investment in real climate action. To help organizations ensure they’re making the most effective investments toward net zero, we build software that independently and accurately automates the evaluation of carbon projects that capture, remove, or avoid emissions. With Sylvera’s data and tools, businesses and governments can confidently invest in, benchmark, deliver, and report real climate impact. Co-founded in 2020 by Dr. Allister Furey and Sam Gill, the company is headquartered in London with additional offices in Belgrade and New York. To date, Sylvera has raised over $96 million from investors such as Balderton Capital, Index Ventures, Insight Partners, LocalGlobe, and Salesforce Ventures. Learn more at www.sylvera.com.

About ACX Group:

ACX Group, including ACX Abu Dhabi (ACX Ltd) and ACX Singapore (AirCarbon Pte. Ltd.), which operate environmental markets platforms in Abu Dhabi and Singapore respectively, caters to corporates, financial traders, carbon project developers and other industry stakeholders. ACX Group provides participants with efficient and transparent trading platforms that are user-friendly, seamless and offer the lowest transaction fees in the market. Leveraging distributed ledger technology, ACX Group facilitates and scales growth of the environmental product markets to align with global ambitions of achieving Net Zero.

ACX Group is proud to be a member of the International Emissions Trading Association (IETA) and the International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC), further enhancing its commitment to sustainability and responsible trading practices for carbon and other environmental products. ACX Group has garnered international recognition as the Best Carbon Exchange globally in Environmental Finance’s esteemed Voluntary Carbon Market Rankings for three consecutive years (2021, 2022, 2023), solidifying its position as a leader in the industry.