The Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE), in collaboration with Xpansiv, has launched a new voluntary carbon market in South Africa. As part of the partnership, JSE and the environmental markets infrastructure provider have formed the separate legal entity JSE Ventures. The new initiative will enable local participants to buy and sell CO2 credits and renewable energy certificates held in both local and global registries.
Purchases will have full access to Xpasiv’s global platform for spot trading, auctions, or requests for quotes for both CO2 credits and renewable energy certificates.
According to the Atlantic Council, between 2020 and 2022, voluntary carbon markets increased four times, crossing the two billion dollar mark in value. In addition, African carbon credits have been steadily growing by an average of 36% over the past five years.
According to Leila Fourie, CEO of the JSE Group, the heightened global focus on carbon markets has presented the opportunity to introduce an innovative solution to market participants while positioning South Africa as a significant contributor to decarbonization.
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“An exciting aspect of operating the global environmental markets infrastructure is partnering with leaders like JSE to enable new marketplaces to scale the energy transition and efficiently support climate finance,” said John Melby, CEO at Xpansiv.
Xpansiv, founded in 2016, is a worldwide supplier of environmental market technology. The company offers services like registry infrastructure, market data, and portfolio management platforms.
South Africa ranks as the twelfth-highest carbon emitter globally. The establishment of a South African voluntary carbon market can expedite the development of carbon offset projects, fulfill the needs of emitters looking to balance their emissions, attract more investment to the nation, and play a significant role in fostering economic growth and advancing sustainable practices, Xpasniv said in a press release.
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