To achieve net zero, we need a whole economy transition—every company, every bank, every insurer and investor will have to adjust their business models, develop credible plans for the transition and implement them. For financial firms, that means reviewing more than the emissions generated by their own business activity. They must measure and report the emissions generated by the companies they invest in and lend to. PCAF's work to standardise the approach to measuring financed emissions is an important step to ensuring that every financial decision takes climate change into account.
Mark Carney, UK Prime Minister's Finance Adviser for COP26 and observer to PCAF
As a global financial institution, and as an industry, we have a critical role to play in accelerating the transition to a low-carbon, more sustainable economy. By joining PCAF, we are helping to drive a consistent framework for institutions to measure financed emissions as well as providing a useful tool in the management of these emissions, which is a critical component when addressing climate change.
Anne Finucane, Vice Chairman, Bank of America
[…] Disclosure of climate-related information by the financial sector is key […]. The PCAF disclosure method enables financial institutions to measure the carbon impact of their portfolio […] and offers a conduit for the redeployment of capital to green activities. I am very proud of the immense amount of work done by PCAF, and its contribution to the work of the Sustainable Finance Platform.
Frank Elderson, Executive Director of Supervision, De Nederlandsche Bank and Chairman, Network for Greening the Financial System (NGFS)
The importance of the role of the financial sector in combating climate change is huge. There’s a necessity to mobilize trillions of dollars in a very short timeframe. We need to mobilize capital and shift it to where it’s needed as quickly as possible. NGFS is working to standardize the way we measure risk. This is extremely important to us and this area is still in its infancy. We need initiatives like the Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials to standardize the measurement of GHG emissions of loans and investment. The link between TCFD and carbon accounting is very clear to me. TCFD is a great initiative, it’s a game changer, but it’s a framework and not a standard. PCAF provides that level of granularity that could contribute to achieving a consistent implementation of TCFD.
Morgan Després, Head of Secretariat, Network for Greening the Financial System (NGFS) and Deputy Head Financial Stability, Department of Banque de France
Finance for climate is flowing at a greater pace than ever before, but it is not flowing fast enough to limit warming to well below 2°C. We see the climate crisis as one so significant we must call “all hands on deck”— and engage with banks and investors at all levels—from the largest institutional asset owners down to the people whose collective deposits represent untapped potential for financing climate change mitigation. We seek to activate climate solutions through innovative finance and the systemic decarbonization of capital. We recognized the pioneering financial institutions within the Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials (PCAF) as a great example of such systemic change. PCAF serves as a unique approach for financial institutions to measure and disclose the climate impact of their loans and investments in order to enable them to decarbonize their portfolio - we are a proud sponsor of PCAF.
Marilyn Waite, Program Officer of Climate & Clean Energy Finance, William and Flora Hewlett Foundation
[…] Defining effective metrics and target setting approaches for financial institutions is a critical step. The Science Based Targets Initiative is working towards a platform for financial sector targets aligned with the Paris Agreement’s goals, and collaborations such as PCAF are an important way for institutions to get started.
Chris Weber, Global Climate & Energy Lead Scientist, WWF
[…] What I like about PCAF is its flexibility. It is open source and there is enough guidance there right now for financials to get started. It is comprehensive; it covers many different asset classes and knows how to start with imperfect data and how to work on increasing data accuracy. As of now it is not a turnkey solution, but it allows financial institutions to start on their journey measuring and lowering financed emissions.
Nicolette Bartlett, Global Director of Climate Change, CDP
[…] Measuring and reporting on the carbon impact of our banking activities is an essential aspect of our sustainability approach. By doing this we can monitor the progress of our various initiatives in a transparent way and take further action where necessary. […] 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
Achmea Investment Management is aware of the important role that the investment community plays in combatting climate change and achieving the ambitious objectives of the energy transition. We accept our responsibility to engage with the companies that we invest in and are committed to support measures to enable clarity about the footprint of our investments. Our participation in PCAF has been a valuable opportunity to learn and at the same time be at the forefront of carbon footprinting for financial institutions.
Rogier Krens, CIO, Achmea Investment Management
[...] It’s time for carbon accounting to become business as usual in financial institutions. PCAF provides an easy way to get started, regardless of the size or location of your organisation. We urge others to take the opportunity that PCAF presents, to share your learning from doing so and together we can play our part in the urgent effort to transition to a sustainable, low carbon future.
Jellie Banga, COO, Triodos Bank
[...] 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
PCAF responds to the need that WRI has seen for a standardized approach to measure GHG emissions across portfolios. We expect this method to be extremely valuable to FIs in understanding their impact on the climate and in providing more transparency to stakeholders.
Cynthia Cummis, Director of Private Sector Climate Mitigation, World Resources Institute and Steering Committee Member, Science Based Targets initiative
PCAF is helping CEI understand the importance of carbon accounting to our work as a financial institution committed to doing our part to address the climate crisis. Addressing this crisis will require significant investment from financial institutions, and we need to understand the carbon profile of our portfolios.
Keith Bisson, President, CEI
[...] By measuring the emissions impact of loans and investments, financial institutions gain greater insights into their portfolios and can more effectively manage risk and create impact. PCAF thus provides a useful methodology and tools to help foster transparency and accountability—all of which supports greater financial stability and the transition towards a low-carbon economy.
Sonja Gibbs, Managing Director and Head of Sustainable Finance, Global Policy Initiatives at the Institute of International Finance
As a network of the world's leading values-based banks, [GABV] want[s] to be a catalyst for positive change in the wider banking system. PCAF does just that, offering a practical, scalable and proven way for financial institutions to help address the climate emergency.
Martin Rohner, Executive Director, Global Alliance for Banking on Values
Carbon footprinting is an important tool that helps identifying part of the climate risk an investor is exposed to. PCAF provides investors with methodologies for different asset classes that can easily be adapted for carbon footprinting purposes. The platform aims to harmonize disclosure and reporting of carbon footprints which contributes to comparability amongst investors and a common understanding of what the footprint actually constitutes. The strength of the platform for us is that we have the opportunity to learn from others regarding developments in carbon footprinting and at the same time we are part of setting the standards.
Martijn Scholten, CIO, MN
By joining PCAF, we can work to better understand the carbon footprint of our portfolios and how we can work with our customers to limit the impacts of climate change. It all starts with establishing an industry-led, consistent and transparent accounting methodology—and from there we can begin to collectively better understand how to align our actions with those of a changing world.
Scott Beckerman, Director of Corporate Sustainability, Comerica
[...] Reporting on the climate impact of our financing and formulating action plans that contribute to reducing CO2 emissions is our strategic spearhead. The PCAF initiative, that we joined in 2019, is an important tool for us to realize our ambitions on this subject.
Olivier Labe, CFO, BNG Bank
The private sector, and in particular the financial sector, has a pivotal role to play in achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals. We believe that the greatest impact we can have is to partner with our clients to decarbonise their activities and to offer products and services that help accelerate a cleaner, healthier world. By participating in PCAF we have a strong starting point to set measurable targets and align our corporate lending portfolio with the climate goals of the Paris Agreement.
Tanya Dos Santos, Global Head of Sustainability, Investec
