Sellers list certified credits at their own price. Buyers pay cash from a funded account. Credits and proceeds move through direct links to the registries, and every trade settles the same day.
A spot market trades for immediate delivery at the current price. On the eXchange, that means certified carbon credits bought for cash at the price the seller has listed, and delivered on the day of the trade. Each credit stands for one tonne of CO₂e.
CTX opened the world's first digital exchange for spot trading voluntary carbon credits, and was the first commercial partner to connect with the UN's CDM registry. It was founded in 2008.
Every member trades in the same market, under the same rules, with the same same-day settlement. The account type sets your membership level.
The standard route onto the exchange for organisations buying for their own footprint, or selling credits from their own projects.
The same market and the same settlement, with membership set for larger organisations. For institutional volumes, Corporate One is available by invitation.
The checks happen once. After that, you can buy or list whenever you like.
Complete the online application and choose the account type that fits your organisation.
Send photo ID and a bank statement under three months old. Sellers also give their registry account details.
Once you are approved, you receive a signed trading agreement and your access code.
Buyers put cash in their account. Sellers transfer credits into escrow and set a price. Then you can trade.
Every trade on the exchange follows the same path. Here is what happens at each stage, and who does what.
Listing
A seller transfers credits to CTX's account at the issuing registry, where they are held in escrow, then sets a volume and an asking price. Buyers can follow the listing through to the registry for the project's information and documents.
Buying
Buyers fund their exchange account first, then buy from any listing at the seller's asking price. The price shown is the price paid, plus CTX's commission and any registry fees.
Settlement
CTX connects directly to the registries. When a trade goes through, the credits move from escrow to the buyer's registry account and the proceeds go to the seller, on the same day. The credits and the cash are both in place before the trade, so delivery and payment are guaranteed, and neither side carries counterparty or non-delivery risk.
Retire or resell
Credits in your registry account are yours to use. Retire them to claim the reduction against your emissions: the registry cancels them for good, so they can never be sold or claimed again. Or hold them and list them on the exchange later. Either way, your trade data and reports can be exported for your own records.
A market only works if members can trade when they need to and see what they are trading. These are the basics of how CTX handles both.
The exchange does not close for weekends, public holidays or time zones. Sellers can list and buyers can buy whenever suits them, and every trade still settles the same day.
Every asking price is visible to every member, and updates as sellers change it.
Direct registry links take you to each project's information and documents before you buy.
Download your trade data and reports for your own records, reporting and audits, along with wider carbon market data.
The exchange runs on Microsoft Azure's SOC 2-audited cloud.
Every member trades under the CTX Rules, which set out how membership, listing, trading and settlement work. Fees are set out in the CTX Fee Structure: exchange members pay an annual membership, which depends on the account type, plus a commission on trades. Registry fees may also apply.
Corporate One accounts work differently: there is no account fee, and every credit costs a flat US$0.10 on each side of the trade.
The eXchange is the core of CTX. These routes connect to the same market for institutions, software platforms and small buyers.
Invite-only, flat-fee accounts for large project developers, corporate buyers and offtake brokers, with an in-house trading desk.
Explore Corporate OneConnect your own platform to the market: read live listings, get an exact cost breakdown including fees, and place trades from your code.
About the APIA simpler account for SMEs and small brokers: buy from 10 tonnes, pay by card, and leave retirement to CTX, with no registry account needed.
About the ClubTrade date plus zero days: the trade settles on the day it is made. On CTX, the credits reach the buyer's registry account and the proceeds reach the seller on the same day as the trade.
At any time. The exchange runs 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, so members in every time zone can trade during their own working hours.
100 tonnes, which is 100 credits. Buyers who need less can use the Carbon Buyers Club, which sells from 10 tonnes.
Delivery of the credits and payment to the seller are both guaranteed. Listed credits are already held in escrow at the registry, and buyers pay from funded accounts, so neither side depends on the other doing something later.
No. You can retire them against your emissions, hold them in your registry account, or sell them on through the exchange. Once a credit is retired, though, it is cancelled for good and cannot be sold again.
Both are published on ctxglobal.com: the CTX Rules and the CTX Fee Structure. If anything is unclear, the trading desk can talk you through it.
Get started
Open an account online and start trading once you are approved. Or talk to our team first about account types, volumes and listing your credits.