The Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market (ICVCM) has opened its first brick-and-mortar office in Singapore, establishing a regional base aimed at strengthening oversight and credibility in Asia’s emerging carbon markets.
The new Asia Pacific hub, set up in collaboration with the Singapore Economic Development Board (Singapore EDB), reflects growing interest in shaping high-integrity carbon credit systems across the region, regional news source Eco Business has reported.
Until now, the ICVCM’s global team operated entirely remotely.
The Singapore office will initially focus on developing and assessing carbon credit methodologies tailored to the region’s environmental and energy transition priorities—particularly the early retirement of coal-fired power plants and the restoration of peatland ecosystems.
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“In Asean, we’re going to be working with governments, domestic crediting programs who want to talk to us about how our Core Carbon Principles (CCPs) work,” the organization’s CEO Amy Merrill was quoted as saying in an interview with Eco Business.
ICVCM evaluates whether project methodologies meet its CCPs—a framework of ten science-based criteria that emphasize environmental integrity and human rights.
The organization does not issue credits itself but works with leading verifiers like Verra and Gold Standard to evaluate project frameworks.
The entry into Singapore follows ICVCM’s participation in the Coalition to Grow Carbon Markets, a multilateral initiative led by Singapore, the UK, and Kenya to boost voluntary carbon trading.
It will also align with Singapore’s international efforts under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, through which the city-state has signed bilateral deals with Peru, Ghana, and Thailand.
Local markets, however, remain sluggish as developers in Southeast Asia continue to face regulatory uncertainty and growing scrutiny over land rights and deforestation risks.
Merrill emphasized that for ICVCM Indigenous rights are “a core principle, not a co-benefit.”
