FourTwoThree Empowers SMEs to Combat Carbon Emissions

As global climate goals become increasingly pressing, companies face mounting pressure to decarbonise their operations and entire supply chains.

For substantial enterprises, notably, the majority of carbon emissions—often exceeding 70%—originate from small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) within their supply chains. Despite their critical role, SMEs frequently lack the essential resources, data, and support to track and curb their carbon footprints.

Enter FourTwoThree, a novel climate action platform, aimed precisely at bridging this gap. Supported by strategic investments from NatWest Group, National Australia Bank (NAB), and SC Ventures, FourTwoThree is poised to enable organisations of all sizes to not only monitor but also comprehend and diminish their carbon emissions, thus fostering the collaborative efforts necessary to address the climate crisis comprehensively.

"Climate action becomes possible when we make it accessible," asserts Glyn Baker, CEO of FourTwoThree. "With regulatory, shareholder, and customer pressure building on large enterprises, we know that the demands on their SME networks are increasing. SMEs play a crucial role in the global economy, representing the majority of commerce, employment and GDP.

"We have the user data and engagement to enable those businesses to accelerate their journey towards a sustainable global transition. Connecting SMEs to better support, accessible financing, and emerging climate innovation will simply make them better and more engaged customers, suppliers, and employers."

Addressing the SME Challenge in the Net Zero Path

The demand for unified climate initiatives is intensifying. A report from the University of Cambridge highlights that half of the estimated US$100tn investment needed to decarbonise global supply chains by 2050 should be directed towards SMEs.

Despite serving as the backbone of the global economy, these businesses often struggle with limited resources and support to measure and mitigate their emissions effectively.

FourTwoThree emerges as a solution tailored to address this crucial void. The platform enables financial institutions such as banks, insurers, and enterprises, along with governments, to assist their SME collaborators in reducing emissions, cutting costs, and enhancing supply chain resilience.

This is especially crucial in managing Scope 3 emissions—indirect emissions that arise throughout a company’s value chain—that can often exceed 70% of total carbon emissions for a large enterprise. A robust partnership between big organizations and their SME suppliers, rooted in trust, simplicity, and mutual benefit, is paramount to tackling these emissions.

A Collaborative and Credible Platform

The name FourTwoThree harks back to the peak atmospheric CO₂ levels—423 parts per million—during its inception. Born out of a collaboration among NatWest Group, NAB, and SC Ventures, the platform combines these entities’ market insights and expertise to present a solution aligned with contemporary financial institutions' rigorous standards.

Ensuring seamless integration with pre-existing banking frameworks, FourTwoThree is engineered to comply with stringent security, risk, and performance standards. At its heart, the platform offers a data-centric service, bestowing large institutions with accurate climate data to enhance their competitive edge, mitigate risks, and comply with evolving sustainability regulations.

For SMEs, it provides an intuitive, user-friendly digital interface that automates carbon footprint calculations, offering bespoke guidance and suggestions. This bilateral value proposition is crucial for engendering the collaboration needed to make substantial inroads on sustainability targets.

Supported by Valtech, a leading technology partner, and built on Amazon's AWS, the platform guarantees enterprise-level security and scalability. By harnessing the collective learnings of its founding team, FourTwoThree crafts a modern ecosystem linking enterprises with their SME customers and suppliers—promoting involvement and accelerating climate action.

Transforming Ambition into Action

FourTwoThree's overarching mission is to translate business climate ambitions into tangible actions. With a platform catering to both large enterprises and SMEs—especially those facing mandatory Scope 3 reporting requirements—FourTwoThree is uniquely positioned to aid organizations across the value chain in reducing emissions and tracking progress toward sustainability.

"The announcement of FourTwoThree reflects NWG’s commitment to collaborative innovation, bringing together a group of global partners to co-create a platform that is not only technologically robust but deeply attuned to the needs of SMEs," notes David Grunwald, Director of Innovation and Partnerships at NatWest Group.

"With this collaboration and collective understanding of the climate challenge, FourTwoThree will empower businesses of all sizes to take meaningful climate action, unlocking real commercial value across multiple supply chains."