EY refers to the global organization, and may refer to one or more, of the member firms of Ernst & Young Global Limited, each of which is a separate legal entity. Ernst & Young Global Limited, a UK company limited by guarantee, does not provide services to clients.
How EY can help
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Supporting organizations with physical and transition risks associated with climate change, and assisting them with market and regulatory changes.
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What’s missing?
Raal: “Supply and demand still struggle to connect. As a result, many promising initiatives remain small-scale and ad hoc. The compliance market is more advanced, but the voluntary carbon market is fragmented, opaque and varies widely in quality and standards. We need standardized frameworks and regulation. Only then will larger players step in and create real momentum.”
De Jong: “The good news is that we are approaching a tipping point. An alliance of stakeholders is now forming to build that momentum. At Nedamco, we’ve been working on this for seven years, and I believe all signals are now turning green.”
Where does that confidence come from?
De Jong: “Three developments are converging. First, the aviation industry has a growing need for carbon credits due to the global CORSIA framework. Second, ICE – the exchange operator behind, among others, the New York Stock Exchange, is starting to offer CORSIA-related instruments, with listing and clearing in places like Abu Dhabi and London. This improves liquidity and price discovery, attracting institutional investors who prefer familiar instruments such as futures, ETFs and bonds. Third, we are seeing major advances in what we call digital MRV – Measurement, Reporting and Verification. In the past, you might measure tree growth with a ruler. Today, sensors, satellite data, AI and blockchain allow continuous and precise monitoring of emission reductions. That brings transparency, lower costs and less room for manipulation.”
Bleijs: “Digital technology is advancing rapidly. We are only beginning to understand AI’s potential. These breakthroughs could be key to building a better carbon market.”
Raal: “They increase transparency and reliability, critical for market participants moving toward well-regulated, low-risk trading environments.”
What about greenwashing?
Bleijs: “It becomes far more manageable, especially when combined with verification by assurance providers. A key concept is ITMO – Internationally Transferred Mitigation Outcomes. This governs international carbon credit transfers and ensures credits are counted only once. When a country sells emission reductions, it must account for that sale domestically, preventing double counting.”