South Korea is making a concerted push to develop its domestic verified carbon market, pairing new institutional infrastructure with planned legislation to bring structure and scale to carbon credit activity in the country.
The Korean Voluntary Carbon Market Alliance, a joint initiative by the Ministry of Planning and Budget and the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), launched this week with a mandate to connect project developers with credit buyers and provide recommendations on policy improvements.
The government plans to cement this framework through a dedicated piece of legislation—the Voluntary Carbon Market Act—which will establish clear rules for credit certification, issuance, and retirement. Under the Act, a registration agency or standard, such as Verra or KCCI, will oversee the full certification process. Independent verification bodies will be required to evaluate projects, with results published by the registration agency to ensure transparency.
A voluntary carbon exchange, developed through a partnership between the Korea Exchange and US-based Xpansiv, is expected to go live by the end of 2026. The platform will include an integrated registry linked to registration agencies, with credit transactions and retirements reflected in real time.
Credits on the exchange will be grouped by product category and assessed through quality evaluations. The government is considering opening the exchange to foreign buyers and allowing units issued by overseas standards to be listed—a step that, combined with collaboration with international carbon rating agencies, is designed to strengthen the exchange's credibility beyond South Korea's borders.
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South Korea's emissions trading scheme (ETS) currently covers 71% of the country's emissions. The government acknowledges that the scheme offers limited incentives for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to pursue reductions.
'Although emission allowance prices have been on the rise since the announcement of the fourth emission allowance allocation plan last year, they remain low compared to major countries, and there is still a long way to go to boost the incentive for reduction in our economy,' said Park Hong-geun, Minister of Planning and Budget.
The Korean Allowance Unit price has risen 63% this year, reaching $11.43 (KRW16,800) per tonne of CO₂ equivalent as of last Friday, driven by expectations of tighter supply later this decade.
To support the market's development, the government will publish regular market statistics, improve coordination across agencies, and establish a dedicated support centre for verified carbon market activity. Over the longer term, South Korea intends to explore links between its domestic verified carbon market, international frameworks such as the CORSIA aviation decarbonisation scheme, and its own ETS.
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As markets like South Korea move to formalise their verified carbon credit infrastructure—raising the bar on transparency, verification, and international credibility—the value of high-integrity carbon assets becomes increasingly clear. At Green Earth, we develop nature-based carbon projects that meet the rigorous standards now shaping market access worldwide: restoring ecosystems, supporting biodiversity, and generating carbon credits backed by leading verification bodies. For businesses building towards validated sustainability targets, the quality of the credits they rely on is as important as the targets themselves. We combine on-the-ground ecological expertise, data intelligence, and end-to-end project oversight to engineer possibilities at scale.
