Climate Impact X and Carbonplace to merge trading, settlement

Climate Impact X (CIX) and Carbonplace announced a proposed merger that would combine CIX’s exchange and price-discovery functions with Carbonplace’s multi-registry settlement platform. The transaction is subject to final regulatory approval. Both firms are headquartered in Singapore and London.

The combined business would offer procurement, trading, custody and retirement services for carbon credits and other environmental credits. It would link execution on an exchange with bank-grade settlement and multi-registry recordkeeping so clients can manage a credit from purchase through retirement with a single provider.

The two firms ran pilot trades in 2022 that covered the full lifecycle of a carbon credit transaction: contracts executed on CIX’s trading platform with settlement completed through Carbonplace’s systems. CIX provides procurement, trading and public price benchmarks. Carbonplace provides access to multiple registries, traceable ownership records, and settlement and custody infrastructure.

Both brands will remain in place during an integration period the companies expect to finish in the first quarter of 2027. Oi-Yee Choo will lead the combined entity as chief executive and Scott Eaton will become president. The firms stated there will be no immediate changes to products, services or client arrangements while the merger is under regulatory review.

Shareholders in the combined entity include BBVA, BNP Paribas, CIBC, DBS Bank, GenZero, Mizuho Financial Group, National Australia Bank, NatWest Group, SGX Group, Standard Chartered, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation and UBS. The companies said the investor group will provide governance, distribution channels and settlement rails.

Oi-Yee Choo, chief executive of CIX, stated, ‘Scaling access and liquidity will require trusted infrastructure that works across voluntary and compliance systems and across geographies.’ Scott Eaton, Carbonplace chief executive, added, ‘Combining multi-registry access with an exchange improves the certainty and auditability institutions expect when credits change hands and are retired.’

The merger comes as regulators and policymakers work to strengthen carbon market rules. Singapore and the UK co-chair the Coalition to Grow Carbon Markets and have agreed a UK-Singapore Green Economy Framework. If approved, the merged company would operate across multiple time zones and registry systems and handle carbon credits and renewable energy certificates.