Voluntary Carbon Market (VCM)
Certify. Monetize. Offset – With Confidence.
The Voluntary Carbon Market (VCM) has evolved into one of the most dynamic pillars of global climate action. It enables companies, organizations, and individuals to finance emission reductions or removals outside their value chains — accelerating decarbonization at scale, while contributing to sustainable development.
At Climate Balanced, we provide end-to-end services across the VCM value chain: from credit certification and verification to trading and offsetting. Whether you're a project developer, a seller, or a climate-conscious buyer, we help you navigate the voluntary market with integrity and impact.
A Brief History of the VCM
The VCM emerged in the early 2000s as a complementary mechanism to the compliance carbon markets under the Kyoto Protocol. Unlike regulated systems, the VCM allows entities to voluntarily purchase carbon credits to compensate for their emissions — often for corporate climate targets, product-level neutrality, or brand differentiation.
The market gained traction with the rise of standards like Gold Standard and Verra (VCS), which introduced credibility, co-benefit certification, and performance-based crediting. Over the past decade, the market has evolved to encompass nature-based solutions, technological removals, community-level interventions, and avoidance-based projects, expanding both its scope and stakeholder base.
Ecosystem Marketplace (2022) reported that over 170 types of carbon credits can be generated from projects applying various science-based quantification methodologies and additionality assessment tools. This number is expected to rise further as global investments increasingly shift toward deep decarbonization and nature-based solutions.
Market Size & Trends
According to Ecosystem Marketplace, the VCM crossed $2 billion in transaction value in 2021, with traded volumes exceeding 500 million tCO₂e. Although prices have shown volatility in recent years, market segmentation and growing demand for “high-quality” credits have driven increased differentiation between credit types, vintages, and attributes.
The World Bank’s confirms that while compliance markets dominate in volume, the VCM plays a critical role in driving innovation, private sector engagement, and financing for climate-positive activities not yet covered by regulations.
Several globally recognized carbon market analysts and financial institutions — including McKinsey, Barclays, and Credit Suisse — project that the size of the Voluntary Carbon Market (VCM) could grow by 25 to 125 times by 2030.
Today, the market is entering a new maturity phase driven by:
- Corporate net-zero targets
- Article 6 readiness and “corresponding adjustments” for integrity
- Sectoral initiatives such as Aviation (CORSIA) and shipping mergence of carbon removal credits and nature-based solutions
- Integirty assurance mechanisms like ICVCM and VCMI
- Carbon credit rating agencies such as Slyveria, Calyx, Bezero and the others
Contemporary Developments
Quality & Integrity Focus: Standards, buyers, and third-party coalitions are pushing for tighter rules on additionality, permanence, leakage, and co-benefits.
Claims & Neutrality Language: The use of terms like “carbon neutral” is increasingly regulated. Buyers must be transparent in how credits are used and claimed.
Digital MRV & Tokenization: Digital platforms and blockchain-based registries are disrupting the traditional certification cycle by increasing transparency and efficiency.
Integration with Article 6: Definition of the soverenigty rights of emission reductions to avoid double counting
Market Consolidation: Registries, developers, and brokers are merging or forming alliances to strengthen liquidity and price signals.
Carbon Credit Rating: Independent rating agencies are emerging to evaluate the quality, integrity, and risk of carbon credits — enhancing transparency and guiding investors toward high-quality climate assets.
How We Help?
At Climate Balanced, we help organizations across all three pillars of the voluntary carbon market:
Project Certification & Credit Generation
If you generate measurable climate impact, we’ll certify it — and connect it with buyers.
We support project developers and impact owners to certify emission reductions or removals under globally recognized VCM standards.
Learn more about here.
Credit Sourcing & Trading:
Sell your verified impact to us — with confidence and speed.
We operate as a credit aggregator and direct buyer from high-quality project portfolios.
Learn more about here.
Carbon Neutrality & Climate Strategies:
Become carbon neutral the right way — through verified impact and transparent credit use.
We assist corporates and institutions in achieving credible climate action through offsetting and beyond.
Learn more about here.
Who Should Work With Us?
- Project developers & asset owners in certifying and monetizing climate projects
- Environmental asset holders looking to sell their credits to high-quality buyers
- Corporates and institutions seeking carbon neutrality or offsetting residual emissions
- Traders & brokers looking for structured, quality-verified credits
- Public institutions exploring voluntary markets for early-stage carbon finance
Ready to Enter the VCM?
Whether you’re developing a project, holding unused credits, or building a climate strategy — we’re your trusted partner in the Voluntary Carbon Market.
Contact us at: trading@climatebalanced.com
Or submit your project or sourcing inquiry here:
