Hanoi (VNS/VNA) - The Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV) has become the first Vietnamese bank to join the Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials (PCAF), strengthening its capacity to measure and manage greenhouse gas emissions linked to its financing activities.

The lender said membership of the global initiative would help it adopt internationally recognised methodologies for measuring financed emissions, improve emissions data quality and support its transition finance strategy.

As climate change increasingly affects economies worldwide, financial institutions are under growing pressure to assess and reduce emissions associated with their lending and investment portfolios, known as financed emissions.

Citing data from the World Resources Institute, BIDV said financed emissions account for nearly all of a bank's total greenhouse gas emissions, making their measurement a key step in developing credible decarbonisation pathways and sustainability strategies.

PCAF is a global alliance of more than 750 financial institutions that jointly develops and applies standardised methods for measuring and disclosing financed emissions. Its accounting standard aims to improve transparency, consistency and comparability across the financial sector.

Through the alliance, BIDV will gain access to international methodologies, technical guidance and updated emissions factors covering multiple countries and economic sectors. It will also apply PCAF's standardised framework to improve the consistency and reliability of its emissions data.

The bank said it would gradually strengthen its emissions data infrastructure and accounting system to support a roadmap for reducing financed emissions in line with the characteristics of its portfolio and long-term development strategy.

BIDV also plans to further enhance climate risk management while expanding green finance and transition finance products to support customers shifting towards more sustainable business models.

The bank said joining PCAF underscores its commitment to advancing green finance and contributing to Vietnam's goal of achieving net zero emissions by 2050./.