Mizuho to invest in Climate Impact X to scale Asia’s global carbon credit market
Wong Pei Ting
CLIMATE Impact X (CIX) has attracted investment from Japan’s Mizuho Financial Group, which will partner the Singapore-based carbon marketplace and exchange, to cater to growing demand for international carbon credits among companies in Japan.
The investment sum is not publicly disclosed due to Mizuho’s corporate policy.
The partners said on Tuesday (Nov 28) that the injection of funds from Mizuho will be used to build out CIX’s existing platforms, deepen the company’s offerings for the Japanese market, and ultimately expand its regional footprint. This will enable both companies to better serve customers in Japan and beyond, especially those in carbon-intensive sectors, they added.
Mizuho is one of the three largest banks in Japan, serving over 20 million retail customers and 70 per cent of companies listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. The investment is subject to shareholder, corporate and regulatory approvals.
CIX is jointly owned by DBS, Singapore Exchange, Standard Chartered and GenZero, a decarbonisation-focused investment platform founded by Temasek.
Mizuho’s investment decision stems from a shared belief between the bank and CIX that carbon credits will play a crucial role in the decarbonisation of Japan, said the statement. This was why the bank has acted to reinforce its position as “a leading institution in responsible financing”.
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Masahiro Kihara, Mizuho’s president and group chief executive officer, said that with the partnership, the bank aims to provide its customers with “reliable and high-quality carbon credits”, and contribute to the expansion of the carbon credit market in Asia and beyond.
He added that he views carbon credits as a mechanism to provide funding for climate-action projects and support the overall decarbonisation of society. The market is also gaining importance in “connecting technologies that achieve carbon removal from the atmosphere with investors, to accelerate their implementation in society”.
CIX chief executive Mikkel Larsen said that the partnership is significant as countries “rarely have a perfect match in the demand and supply of carbon credits”. Thus, the stated aims of the partnership are to “facilitate cross-border trading and connectivity between markets”, which both companies believe are “crucial to resolve imbalances in the demand and supply of carbon credits, and help to scale the market effectively”.
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Larsen added that CIX sees Japan as an increasingly progressive market for decarbonisation solutions, including its use of carbon credits, so having a strong partner in Mizuho would enable it to meaningfully serve customers in the market.
Standard Chartered group chief executive Bill Winters, who is also the current chair of CIX’s board of directors, said the board is pleased to have Mizuho as a partner in advancing the collective goal of scaling the carbon market.
“Carbon markets are a critical piece of the net-zero puzzle, so it’s imperative that we work together to build a high-integrity carbon market underpinned by science, strong foundations and trust.”
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