Perseus – 2024 reports – Icebreaker One

2024 Report

Summary report with Executive Summary, key outputs and outcomes.

Supporting Reports

Perseus 2024 Report – Appendix
Perseus: Product opportunities, User Needs, Ecosystem Map, Future Innovation
Scheme Agreement Perseus (Pilot)
Perseus Assurability Framework (Pilot)
Perseus Pilot Data Standards (Pilot)
Perseus Provenance and Assurance (Pilot) (technical)
Perseus Logging Requirements (Pilot)

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Executive summary

Perseus unlocks access to finance to help businesses decarbonise

Perseus makes it easier for UK SMEs to access green financing by automating their sustainability reporting. With Perseus, SMEs can share accurate emissions data calculated on assurable usage and carbon intensity. This enables better benchmarking, analysis, action and measurable impact.

Perseus tackles a combination of challenges:

millions of SMEs that need to decarbonise rapidly
a low-efficacy pipeline of finance to enable them to do so
a high-friction process of emissions reporting to help SMEs access finance
access to quality, comparable, assurable and secure data within a harmonised legal framework
high effort, expense and compliance risk for financial service providers in calculating and reporting financed emissions
derisking of investments and management of brand reputation
providing feedback loops between top-down standard definitions and practical commercial implementations

It is amongst the most advanced cross-sector smart data schemes in the UK, bringing together strategic target sectors of energy and finance.

It is being developed by a group including commercial businesses (incumbents and challengers), non-profits, public bodies and trade associations, with support from the UK Government.

It is designed to scale internationally:

With global members that already do business with millions of SMEs, including Lloyds, Barclays, NatWest, Tide, Sage, Xero and Intuit
With a Scheme agreement that is extensible to other domains, adaptable to different legal jurisdictions and sectoral data regimes, and compatible with GDPR

The Perseus pilot is now enabling green loans supported by automated emissions reporting

The pilot is running from November 2024 to June 2025, involving real data sharing and real loan-making. The Development Bank of Wales, Sage, Perse and Smart DCC are already participating.

It focuses on automating access to assurable SME electricity smart meter data and its carbon intensity at the time and place of use. SMEs will be able to receive emissions reports generated from these data and share them, via reporting solutions, to their banks or lenders to unlock green finance. The data can be used for baselining and benchmarking as well as ongoing measurement, reporting and verification.

We believe that Perseus represents:

A viable connection between the financial economy and real economy to enable a clear path to net zero in a secure, scalable and assurable manner
A strong, impact-focused initiative for SMEs – a complex and underserved part of the economy that account for 50% of UK business emissions
A practical example of building on existing best practices from Open Banking, addressing Smart Data rights (e.g. GDPR and emerging Data (Use and Access) Bill), and using established open standards where appropriate (e.g. FAPI, RDF/DCAT, Schema.org)

Perseus has made rapid R&D progress in 2024

A robust governance framework that enabled over 150 stakeholders to engage in delivery of a cross-sector programme, with independent oversight from the IoD, ICAEW, UK Finance and British Business Bank
A practical operating model for collaborative Scheme development
A usable contractual framework including multilateral Scheme Agreement and Trust Framework Membership
An appropriate assurability framework
A secure technical solution for provenance, permissioning and data exchange

Seven key innovations underpin Perseus impact

Based on explicit user needs developed and defined by Perseus Members throughout the programme, Perseus has addressed:

Data protection: Legal and data protection design for transfer of SME data from the SEC-regulated space of smart meter data to the FCA-regulated space of financial institutions
Outcome: enables the flow of data across previously siloed spaces in a manner which supports SMEs in the transition to net zero
SME control: Design of disclosures, licences, user interface requirements and underlying technical components to ensure SME permission is received, asserted and managed in line with data protection regulations, and to cover processing throughout the chain
Outcome: provides SMEs with strong retention of control over their data, while also providing data users the confidence they can process data appropriately
Harmonised, accurate calculations: Conceptual and technical design of the emission calculation methodology based on globally-recognised PCAF framework
Outcomes: makes use of the best available data and harmonised calculation methodology to provide banks and SMEs with accurate, automated ways to calculate carbon emissions and monitor the real impact of financed interventions. Enable accurate benchmarking and market-wide comparability
Assurability: A lightweight, scalable and extensible approach to making data assurable. This has mechanisms to transmit provenance (chain of custody) and assurance (quality indicators) information alongside data flows
Outcome: enables financial institutions to reach reasonable assurance about the emissions data provided to improve reliability and compliance
Scheme definition: The foundations for machine-readable representations of the scheme “rules” (its agreements, roles, licences, access permissions, API standards and SLAs) within a version-controlled Registry
Outcome: builds confidence and transparency in the rules that are enforced within the Perseus Scheme at the point in time in which the data was processed
Scheme implementation (technical): The pilot implementation of a minimal secure, scalable and governable data sharing infrastructure, drawing heavily on Open Banking architecture and related standards
Outcome: aligns with proven best practice in the smart data landscape and maximises both conceptual and operational interoperability for the future
Scheme implementation (legal): Member agreements that enable participants to be added to a machine-readable Trust Framework Directory. This controls the role(s) that they can undertake in the Perseus Scheme and allows them to register compliant data services and issue digital certificates that securely identify them when transacting data
Outcome: enhances clarity and transparency of the roles, responsibilities, and permitted activities of Scheme members when transacting data

Perseus provides value for SMEs, banks and lenders, carbon accounting providers, and the UK

Members have expressed many value points relevant to their businesses. Common value points include:

reducing the complexity and emerging regulatory burdens of reporting
managing the costs of scaling impact
addressing accuracy and building trust with customers
simplifying engagement and delivering value to customers

Government

SMEs are critical to the delivery of net zero in the UK. Access to detailed and reliable data means sustainability policies can be designed based on reliable real economy data. Perseus can support the UK’s delivery of its climate goals by providing the means to focus economic incentives, based on assurable data at scale. It also ensures that the underlying data is handled aligned with existing and emerging legislation, in a secure and permissioned environment.

“We’re delighted to see innovative projects such as Perseus use cross-sector Smart Data to help unlock green finance for UK SMEs”
Justin Madders MP, Department for Business and Trade

Financial Service Providers (FSP) — Banks and Lenders

FSPs are under increasing pressure to deliver demonstrable net zero investments with credible reporting. Perseus brings efficiency to this process, helps de-risk investment and adds brand value through a robust multi-stakeholder collaboration.

“We are participating in the pilot to demonstrate use cases of Perseus in Green investment, using Perseus derived emissions data in our due diligence for green business loans. We think that Perseus is a feasible market solution to scale assurable SME carbon accounting and disclosures. It can help to reduce business burden and drive down costs for SMEs, while providing assurance of data sources for lenders, thereby supporting SMEs to access the finance they need to help deliver Net Zero.”
Matthew Kelly, Sustainability Manager, Development Bank of Wales

Carbon Accounting Provider (CAP)

With Perseus, CAPS can offer more comprehensive, accurate, and actionable services. Assurable data provided by SMEs will enable personalised, accurate and in-depth emissions reports that assess carbon intensity, with the ability to analyse usage at a granular level. This improved workflow and transparency can help SMEs engage with CAPs easily to demonstrate their green credentials, and reduce reporting costs.

“There is no net-zero progress without SMEs. But getting consistent and reliable data from small enterprises is currently a major bottleneck. Perseus addresses this issue head on, aiming at establishing a transparent, credible data standard to exchange crucial SME data so that we can finally start to make progress towards net zero”
Dr. Alexander Schmidt, Head of Science, Sustainability & Climate Research, Normative

“Sage is on a mission to help our SMB customers achieve net zero through market leading carbon accounting software. We are thrilled to collaborate with the Icebreaker One team and Perseus to significantly enhance the accuracy of our Scope 2 emissions estimates. By simplifying pre-competitive Scope 2 data access, Project Perseus has done the heavy lifting, enabling us to better serve SMBs on their journey to sustainability. This innovation not only makes our product more valuable but also reinforces our commitment to supporting SMBs in their net zero journey”
Conrad Langridge, Global Marketing Lead Carbon Accounting, Sage

SME

Accurate data directly from the source will assist business owners and sustainability managers to make strategic decarbonisation decisions. Perseus removes the need for SME owners and employees to collect emissions data manually, meaning greatly increased accuracy and reduced workload.

“Unlike larger businesses, small firms often don’t have the expertise and resources for carbon accounting, and doing it manually can create a huge burden on them. This can hold them back from procurement opportunities as well as access to finance. Automation and innovation could therefore be important in helping small businesses handle carbon accounting”
Ian O’Donnell, Deputy Policy and Advocacy Chair, Federation of Small Businesses

Perseus needs stable funding and engagement to launch in 2025

Perseus aims to help Members launch Perseus-enabled services to the UK market in 2025. This requires funding from a combination of industry and, ideally, government. A mixed funding model will ensure it is developed in the public interest, and industry funding helps ensure the project is aligned with industry needs. Combined, these lay the foundations for international scale.

Recommendations

To accelerate capital to decarbonising businesses, the Perseus team recommends:

Recommendations to UK Government

Fund Perseus development: government funding can ensure the project is developed in the public interest, is aligned with the UK’s SME sector and its role in the transition, and provide a public template for smart data schemes
Explore opportunities for tax incentives: Linked with national targets, the Treasury could explore the potential for a Net Zero tax credit to reduce the tax liability to companies for their net zero actions
Test data-enabled innovation: As a flagship cross-sector smart data program in the UK, government can proactively test concepts and new rights included in the Data (Use and Access) Bill

Recommendations to industry

Engage your product teams to develop customer-facing propositions
Become members of Perseus and shape the implementation and next steps for the programme (commercial needs, legal, compliance, product, comms)

Recommendations to standards, frameworks and related bodies

Help set priorities for automation and scalability that unlock the greatest impact for your existing work

Table 1: User needs and value

	Needs	Value created
Financial service providers (FSP)	Secure access to assurable SME energy data in order to provide guidance and support to SMEs on green finance options Standardised, verifiable, consistent carbon accounting reports from SMEs	Access to granular, assurable data to reduce risk in lending Track and analyse the impact of any SME green finance investment they provide and benchmark SME performance Confidently design financial products that reward SMEs for their decarbonisation efforts Deliver high-scoring compliance and sustainability reporting, including PCAF
Small and Medium Enterprise (SME)	Simpler and easier access to appropriate green finance to deliver carbon reduction interventions Lower administrative and cost burden of carbon emissions reporting Support to develop sustainability action plans and access carbon intensity data in order to reduce their carbon emissions and costs	Better access to transition finance Reduced reporting burden Minimised manual effort in measuring and reporting GHG footprint Better matching of their financing needs with loan providers
Carbon Accounting Providers (CAP)	More accurate, transparent carbon reporting methods and data Provide decarbonisation advice and potentially offer innovative services to SMEs based on the SMEs’ energy consumption data	Improved access to standardised data sharing for emissions reporting, benchmarking, and analysis Offer comprehensive, accurate, and actionable services to SME clients
Government	An SME sector that is equipped to reduce its emissions Financial flows that are aligned with the UK’s clean power and growth missions, as well as its NDC	Analysis of assurable data supports the development of targeted decarbonisation strategies, achievement of the UK’s NDC, and allows tracking and adjustment of policies as needed Enables the creation of financial incentives for sustainable outcomes, and promotes transparency and accountability in the carbon reporting landscape
Energy Data Provider (EDP)	Legally and securely enable data to be shared at national scale	Maximising impact from data reuse aligned with the national data strategy and net zero transition planning For the energy sector, lays foundations that will impact capital allocation planning and energy decentralisation strategies

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Please contact us at perseus@ib1.org if you would like to discuss anything.