The Regional Voluntary Carbon Market Company (VCM), founded by the Public Investment Fund (PIF) and the Saudi Tadawul Group, has strengthened its international presence through new strategic partnerships in Asia. The company announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Marubeni Corporation—one of Japan’s leading trading houses and the first Japanese entity to collaborate with VCM—to advance cooperation in voluntary carbon markets.
According to a VCM statement, the agreement marks a major step in broadening the exchange’s reach across Asia and diversifying its participant base.
VCM also entered a partnership with Singapore-based Climate Bridge International, appointing the firm as an advisory partner. Together, both entities will accelerate carbon project development in Saudi Arabia and across the global south.
Climate Bridge International specializes in climate-aligned strategies, carbon project development, sustainability innovation, and policy insight. Moreover, the collaboration is expected to support VCM’s mission to provide a transparent, high-integrity marketplace that connects global buyers and suppliers of quality carbon credits.
Carbon Market
In its announcement, VCM highlighted that its expanding network of partnerships reflects rising international confidence in Saudi Arabia’s institutional-grade carbon market. Growing engagement from Asian companies underscores increasing interest in the Kingdom’s economic opportunities and its leadership in sustainability, green investment, and climate action.
The agreements with Marubeni and Climate Bridge International were formalized during the Future Investment Initiative (FII) Priority Summit in Tokyo. The signing ceremony was attended by Saudi Ambassador to Japan Dr. Ghazi Binzagr and VCM Chairperson Rania Nashar, emphasizing the strategic significance of the partnerships.
Asian Collaboration
VCM Acting CEO and Head of Technology Fadi Saadeh stated that the partnership with Marubeni enhances the exchange’s global positioning and advances its mission to build a high-integrity marketplace with broad international participation. He also welcomed Climate Bridge International as an advisory partner, noting the value their expertise adds for entities in Saudi Arabia and the broader region.
Naoki Tamaki, Chairman of Marubeni Saudi Investment, said the MoU aligns closely with Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 and brings together VCM’s market-building capabilities with Marubeni’s global experience in carbon-credit trading and renewable energy. He also emphasized the joint commitment to supporting a trusted carbon-market ecosystem that fosters sustainable economic growth.
Alvin Lim, CEO of Climate Bridge International, highlighted the combined strengths of both organizations, stating that their collaboration aims to develop a new generation of technically robust, investment-ready carbon projects that meet the highest integrity standards.
1st Voluntary Carbon Credit Exchange
VCM recently launched the Kingdom’s first voluntary carbon credit exchange platform on November 12, 2024. Designed to offer transparent, scalable, and liquid market infrastructure, the platform enables secure transactions and facilitates price and data discovery across carbon credit projects. It offers:
- Institutional-grade trading infrastructure
- Open market connectivity with major global registries
- Potential development of mechanisms supporting Islamic finance
- Auction market, request-for-quote tools, and reported trade functionality
Additional features will be introduced as the platform evolves.
The voluntary carbon offset market is projected to grow from $2 billion in 2020 to approximately $250 billion by 2050. Finally, through its new exchange, VCM aims to ensure that buyers and sellers in Saudi Arabia and the region have access to secure, efficient, and world-class voluntary carbon market infrastructure.
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