Government coalition announces new policy playbook to advance carbon credit demand
LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM, June 23, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- The Coalition to Grow Carbon Markets has announced plans to publish a policy playbook of the most impactful policy options to drive demand for high-integrity carbon credits, helping to accelerate corporate decarbonisation while protecting competitiveness.
The first-of-its-kind government-led coalition laid out the plans at London Climate Action Week, Europe’s largest city-wide climate event, where the Coalition was formally launched last year.
Now backed by 11 government members, the Coalition is increasingly recognised as instrumental to building corporate demand for carbon credits and unlocking carbon credit finance at scale. Its latest announcement comes in response to calls from business for more clarity and consistency from governments on the use of carbon credits.
The playbook will outline a range of ways for policymakers to take action on the Coalition’s Shared Principles, released last year, which provide international alignment on the role of carbon credits in corporate decarbonisation plans. The playbook, which will be published at the UN’s COP31 climate talks, will help guide the national efforts of Coalition members, providing investors, buyers and other stakeholders the direction needed to accelerate purchases of high-integrity carbon credits. The playbook will also provide guidance to any country aiming to stimulate carbon credit market activity.
"Designing effective policy to stimulate demand in carbon credit markets requires clear, coordinated efforts. The Coalition's policy playbook will bring together the experiences of our member countries, the industry intelligence of our business network, and the expertise of our international partners to identify powerful policy options to move businesses from caution to confidence on carbon credit investment.
“This will help to unlock private sector finance for projects that support climate and sustainable development - an opportunity that, at this critical juncture for the planet, we cannot afford to miss," said Rachel Kyte, UK Special Representative for Climate, and Co-Chair of the Coalition.
Unlocking the potential of carbon credit markets is widely seen as fundamental to fulfilling national and corporate climate targets around the world, while protecting competitiveness. For example, recent analysis from the City of London Corporation shows expanded markets would support job growth in the UK, where the services that support carbon credit markets already contribute £1.2 billion to the economy each year.
“Carbon credit markets have real potential to direct private capital toward nature, land use, and emerging markets, but financial institutions and private sector companies have struggled to engage at scale without clearer policy signals from governments,” said Mary Schapiro, Vice Chair, Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero.
“The Coalition’s playbook will be a key step towards providing that clarity, giving the private sector the confidence to build the products, platforms, and long-term purchasing structures that allow the market to function more effectively at scale.”
Several Coalition members have already begun to take action aligned with the Shared Principles to drive change in their economies. For example, the New Zealand Government has taken steps to back the growth of trusted nature and carbon credit markets by recognising and endorsing high-quality credit schemes and clarifying best practice for participants in carbon credit markets, in line with the Coalition's Shared Principles. Canada is participating in a coordinated initiative involving government and leading corporate and financial institutions to advance demand for Canadian carbon removals credits, including by promoting a recommended minimum set of project eligibility guidelines that will align with the Shared Principles.
“Canada supports internationally aligned efforts to strengthen demand for high-integrity carbon credits and advance the role of carbon markets in driving credible climate action. Greater consistency and confidence across markets can help unlock private investment, accelerate emissions reductions and carbon removal, and support progress toward global climate goals.
“Canada will continue to draw on international best practices, including those that will be showcased in the forthcoming policy playbook, as we advance our approach to high-integrity carbon markets in ways that deliver both environmental and economic benefits,” said Hon. Julie Dabrusin, Minister of the Environment, Climate Change and Nature, Canada.
Plans for the policy playbook come amid clear signals that leading businesses are beginning to position themselves in recognition that the market is maturing.
MSCI Carbon Markets found that the value of offtake agreements in 2025, where companies agree contracts to secure future supply, nearly tripled year-on-year to USD$ 12.3 billion, indicating that buyers are securing quality credits now in anticipation of potentially higher prices and tighter supply in the future.
To build true scale, the Coalition will use the playbook to support government implementation of the range of policies needed to unlock demand, reflecting national needs and circumstances while ensuring approaches are consistent. Egypt has also expressed support for the Coalition's work to drive demand for high-integrity carbon credits, demonstrating global momentum.
"Egypt shares the Coalition's conviction that high-integrity carbon markets are a powerful engine for climate action and for new economic opportunities. Clear, consistent, and stable government signals are what give businesses and investors the confidence to act, and to move capital at the scale and speed this transition demands. We see real value in working alongside like-minded governments to build the enabling policy environment this market needs. This coalition is the right forum to turn shared objectives into tangible actions,” said H.E. Dr Mohamed Farid Saleh, Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade, Egypt
Alongside the Policy Playbook, the Coalition is working to strengthen the legal and financial foundations of carbon credit markets by advancing the infrastructure needed to facilitate, de-risk, and scale transactions, enabling capital to flow efficiently as policy accelerates demand.
The Coalition announced it will work with partners including the City of London Corporation and its UK Carbon Market Forum to apply lessons from proven capital markets to help carbon credit markets scale.
The Coalition’s collaboration with the City of London Corporation aims to build a network of financial market actors from both the private and public sector to inform the development of consistent and transparent market infrastructure. This builds on recognition of London as a key financial hub for international carbon credit markets, with opportunity to expand as the market scales, alongside a constellation of other innovative carbon credit markets hubs globally.
Chris Hayward, Policy Chairman at the City of London Corporation, said: “This partnership demonstrates the critical role of public–private collaboration in scaling carbon markets. By drawing on London’s expertise in financial market infrastructure, we can help create the transparent, resilient systems needed to unlock capital and support the transition to a net zero economy globally.”
Since launching at London Climate Action Week in 2025, the Coalition has grown to comprise Canada, France, Indonesia, Kenya, Panama, Peru, Singapore, Switzerland, New Zealand, Zambia and the UK. The Coalition is co-chaired by Kenya, Singapore and the UK.
The first-of-its-kind government-led coalition laid out the plans at London Climate Action Week, Europe’s largest city-wide climate event, where the Coalition was formally launched last year.
Now backed by 11 government members, the Coalition is increasingly recognised as instrumental to building corporate demand for carbon credits and unlocking carbon credit finance at scale. Its latest announcement comes in response to calls from business for more clarity and consistency from governments on the use of carbon credits.
The playbook will outline a range of ways for policymakers to take action on the Coalition’s Shared Principles, released last year, which provide international alignment on the role of carbon credits in corporate decarbonisation plans. The playbook, which will be published at the UN’s COP31 climate talks, will help guide the national efforts of Coalition members, providing investors, buyers and other stakeholders the direction needed to accelerate purchases of high-integrity carbon credits. The playbook will also provide guidance to any country aiming to stimulate carbon credit market activity.
"Designing effective policy to stimulate demand in carbon credit markets requires clear, coordinated efforts. The Coalition's policy playbook will bring together the experiences of our member countries, the industry intelligence of our business network, and the expertise of our international partners to identify powerful policy options to move businesses from caution to confidence on carbon credit investment.
“This will help to unlock private sector finance for projects that support climate and sustainable development - an opportunity that, at this critical juncture for the planet, we cannot afford to miss," said Rachel Kyte, UK Special Representative for Climate, and Co-Chair of the Coalition.
Unlocking the potential of carbon credit markets is widely seen as fundamental to fulfilling national and corporate climate targets around the world, while protecting competitiveness. For example, recent analysis from the City of London Corporation shows expanded markets would support job growth in the UK, where the services that support carbon credit markets already contribute £1.2 billion to the economy each year.
“Carbon credit markets have real potential to direct private capital toward nature, land use, and emerging markets, but financial institutions and private sector companies have struggled to engage at scale without clearer policy signals from governments,” said Mary Schapiro, Vice Chair, Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero.
“The Coalition’s playbook will be a key step towards providing that clarity, giving the private sector the confidence to build the products, platforms, and long-term purchasing structures that allow the market to function more effectively at scale.”
Several Coalition members have already begun to take action aligned with the Shared Principles to drive change in their economies. For example, the New Zealand Government has taken steps to back the growth of trusted nature and carbon credit markets by recognising and endorsing high-quality credit schemes and clarifying best practice for participants in carbon credit markets, in line with the Coalition's Shared Principles. Canada is participating in a coordinated initiative involving government and leading corporate and financial institutions to advance demand for Canadian carbon removals credits, including by promoting a recommended minimum set of project eligibility guidelines that will align with the Shared Principles.
“Canada supports internationally aligned efforts to strengthen demand for high-integrity carbon credits and advance the role of carbon markets in driving credible climate action. Greater consistency and confidence across markets can help unlock private investment, accelerate emissions reductions and carbon removal, and support progress toward global climate goals.
“Canada will continue to draw on international best practices, including those that will be showcased in the forthcoming policy playbook, as we advance our approach to high-integrity carbon markets in ways that deliver both environmental and economic benefits,” said Hon. Julie Dabrusin, Minister of the Environment, Climate Change and Nature, Canada.
Plans for the policy playbook come amid clear signals that leading businesses are beginning to position themselves in recognition that the market is maturing.
MSCI Carbon Markets found that the value of offtake agreements in 2025, where companies agree contracts to secure future supply, nearly tripled year-on-year to USD$ 12.3 billion, indicating that buyers are securing quality credits now in anticipation of potentially higher prices and tighter supply in the future.
To build true scale, the Coalition will use the playbook to support government implementation of the range of policies needed to unlock demand, reflecting national needs and circumstances while ensuring approaches are consistent. Egypt has also expressed support for the Coalition's work to drive demand for high-integrity carbon credits, demonstrating global momentum.
"Egypt shares the Coalition's conviction that high-integrity carbon markets are a powerful engine for climate action and for new economic opportunities. Clear, consistent, and stable government signals are what give businesses and investors the confidence to act, and to move capital at the scale and speed this transition demands. We see real value in working alongside like-minded governments to build the enabling policy environment this market needs. This coalition is the right forum to turn shared objectives into tangible actions,” said H.E. Dr Mohamed Farid Saleh, Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade, Egypt
Alongside the Policy Playbook, the Coalition is working to strengthen the legal and financial foundations of carbon credit markets by advancing the infrastructure needed to facilitate, de-risk, and scale transactions, enabling capital to flow efficiently as policy accelerates demand.
The Coalition announced it will work with partners including the City of London Corporation and its UK Carbon Market Forum to apply lessons from proven capital markets to help carbon credit markets scale.
The Coalition’s collaboration with the City of London Corporation aims to build a network of financial market actors from both the private and public sector to inform the development of consistent and transparent market infrastructure. This builds on recognition of London as a key financial hub for international carbon credit markets, with opportunity to expand as the market scales, alongside a constellation of other innovative carbon credit markets hubs globally.
Chris Hayward, Policy Chairman at the City of London Corporation, said: “This partnership demonstrates the critical role of public–private collaboration in scaling carbon markets. By drawing on London’s expertise in financial market infrastructure, we can help create the transparent, resilient systems needed to unlock capital and support the transition to a net zero economy globally.”
Since launching at London Climate Action Week in 2025, the Coalition has grown to comprise Canada, France, Indonesia, Kenya, Panama, Peru, Singapore, Switzerland, New Zealand, Zambia and the UK. The Coalition is co-chaired by Kenya, Singapore and the UK.
Harvey Presence
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