International banking group Standard Chartered announced the launch of Supply Net Zero, a new free platform aimed at helping its smaller suppliers to measure and reduce their carbon footprint.

While financed emissions account for the significant majority of Standard Chartered’s Scope 3 emissions, the bank’s supply and value chain emissions remain substantially larger than its direct Scope 1 and 2 emissions. Standard Chartered has set long-term targets to reduce emissions in its supply chain, including a goal to direct 50% of its total spend with suppliers who have set science-based emissions reduction targets, and it has prioritized collaboration with suppliers actively pursuing decarbonization. Standard Chartered revealed that its supplier emissions intensity decreased by 6% over the past year.

According to Standard Chartered, the new tool is designed to connect its suppliers to practical decarbonization resources and support, and is open to all of the bank’s suppliers. Key features of the platform include emissions tracking, enabling the collection and analysis of emissions data to help understand impact; action plan creation with tailored templated decarbonization strategies; education tools, including sustainability webinars, and; reporting, with access to real-time dashboards to review and report progress.

In a post announcing the launch of the platform, Tanuj Kapilashrami, Group Chief Operating Officer at Standard Chartered, said:

“For many suppliers, taking the first step can be the most challenging: understanding where emissions come from, knowing what actions to take, and finding the right support to make progress. By bringing together practical tools, resources and guidance, the platform aims to help suppliers navigate that process with greater confidence and clarity.”