TAG :Sustainability Accounting

Over the past few years, when most companies talked about ESG, their attention was almost entirely focused on the “E”—the environmental pillar.Carbon emissions, energy use, and capital investment have already become baseline competencies for finance and accounting teams.

From 2026 onward, however, what begins to influence financing terms and credit ratings most directly is often not E, but S.

From an accountant’s perspective, it is worth stating this plainly:
banks and investment institutions are no longer looking only at how much carbon you emit. They are increasingly asking a different question—whether your organization is structurally resilient enough to endure.

In recent months, a new narrative has started to circulate in the market:
“It seems the EU CBAM may be postponed until 2027. Does that mean we can afford to wait and see?”

Many Taiwanese exporters—particularly in steel, aluminum, cement, chemicals, and other energy-intensive manufacturing sectors—are quietly weighing the same question:
should capital expenditures be put on hold, at least for now?

From the perspective of an accountant and financial advisor, I would put it bluntly:
a delay is not a cancellation—and waiting may ultimately prove to be the most expensive option of all.

In January 2026, Taiwan will officially begin levying its carbon fee.

For many business owners, the first reaction is often, “Is this just another excuse for the government to collect money?”

But from an accountant’s perspective, there is an uncomfortable truth that needs to be stated clearly: the carbon fee is neither a slogan nor a sustainability branding issue. It is a real cost that will flow directly into the financial statements.

And in the first year, the biggest risk is not how much you pay. The real challenge lies in how the cost is recognized, when it is accrued, and whether it is accounted for correctly at all.

Against the backdrop of a high-interest-rate environment and heightened geopolitical tensions, the predictability of the traditional U.S. IPO market has declined significantly.

When Climate Risk Escalates — “Natural Capital” Is Now Part of Financial Disclosure

Following the issuance of IFRS S1 and S2 by the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB), which established the global framework for disclosing climate-related financial risks, the recommendations released by the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) signal a major shift: companies must now expand their focus beyond carbon emissions (climate risk) to encompass the broader spectrum of nature-related risks.

The convergence of these two standards positions TNFD as the second major disclosure framework that directly affects financial reporting. For industries highly dependent on natural capital—such as water resources, land, and biodiversity—including agriculture, construction, manufacturing, and tourism, TNFD adoption is not merely a sustainability exercise. It is a critical accounting issue that directly influences asset valuation and impairment testing.

When reviewing business performance, cross-border enterprises often revisit the quality of their strategic judgments, including choices of direction, risk assessments, and market assumptions.

A Wake-Up Call for 2026 Budget Planning — Cap-and-Trade Is Far More Forceful Than the Carbon Fee

With Taiwan’s carbon fee scheduled to take effect in 2026, corporate finance and accounting teams are facing unprecedented budgeting challenges. Yet the truly disruptive factor is not the price per ton of emissions, but the highly probable introduction of a cap-and-trade system in the near future.

Cap-and-trade not only imposes a strict limit on total corporate emissions but may also trigger carbon credit scarcity and soaring compliance costs—directly constraining production scale and eroding profitability. This article examines the potential impact of cap-and-trade and explores how companies can adopt financial strategies to optimize capital expenditure in advance, turning emerging risks into strategic assets.

After a subsidiary is established overseas, the flow of information is often the first element to change. Information must move across departments, institutional frameworks, and linguistic contexts, and this movement involves multiple points of transfer.

In the past, ESG management mainly focused on corporate governance structures, carbon emission control, and supply chain disclosure. However, as the concept of sustainable development continues to deepen, global policies and investment institutions have begun expanding ESG applications to the consumer level. In recent years, the European Union has emphasized a policy framework for “Sustainable Consumption and Production,” guiding companies to integrate environmental impact assessments into every stage—from design, production, and packaging to sales and payment.

In 2025, debates in Japan over defense and economic security have intensified once again. The long-circulated view within policy circles that “a Taiwan contingency is a Japan contingency” has taken on new strategic significance amid the formation of a new cabinet and shifts in the global landscape.

Driven by the rise of climate change awareness and sustainable finance, carbon emissions are no longer viewed merely as an environmental issue but as a critical indicator of corporate financial risk. According to a 2024 Bloomberg report, more than 230 financial institutions worldwide—managing a combined total of USD 40 trillion in assets—have publicly committed to supporting climate-related disclosures and incorporating them into their investment decision-making processes.

Remote collaboration has blurred the geographical boundaries of work. Some handle accounting for Tokyo-based firms from their homes in Taipei; others design for European brands while living in Okinawa. Cross-time-zone meetings and cloud-based deliveries have become the norm.