The Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials (PCAF) has published a global standard for capital markets to measure and disclose the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated with off-balance sheet emissions. The Global GHG Accounting and Reporting Standard for Capital Markets covers the primary issuance of capital markets instruments and loan syndication, such as bonds and equity and debt investments in private markets. “Capital markets represent a significant portion of global capital flows, yet, until now, there has been no standardised approach to account for their climate impact,” said Angélica Afanador, PCAF’s Executive Director. The standard requires financial institutions to report their facilitated emissions using a 33% weighting factor, and to disclose the applied weighting factor in its public reports, but financial institutions have the option to report facilitated emissions without weighting, so long as this is reported separately with “clear rationale”. Jeanne Martin, Head of the Banking Programme at UK NGO ShareAction, said: “While we strongly welcome PCAF encouraging banks to go further, the guidelines published today are further proof that voluntary climate initiatives cannot deliver what is needed for people and planet.”
