Online emissions trading platform Carbon Trade Exchange (CTX) has hired a co-founder of the Chicago Climate Exchange (CCX) as a managing director for its US operations.

Michael Walsh, who was also an executive vice president at the now-closed CCX, will act as MD for public policy and research at CTX, and will also sit on the board of CTX USA, the company said in an emailed statement.

“Walsh brings a track record of fostering constructive relations with international, federal and state environmental agencies and oversight bodies such as USEPA, CFTC and related Congressional activities, research bodies and industry associations.”

As a senior economist with the Chicago Board of Trade, Walsh in the mid-1990s directed the first three annual auctions of SO2 emission allowances under the US Environmental Protection Agency’s acid rain reduction program.

“Walsh was instrumental in the creation of the European Climate Exchange and the Chicago Climate Futures Exchange and served on the board of directors of the Montreal Climate Exchange,” CTX said.

All of those exchanges were opened by UK-based Climate Exchange plc, which was bought by market operators Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) in 2010.

The European Climate Exchange was merged into ICE Futures Europe, while ICE later decided to end trade on the Chicago and Montreal bourses.

In 2011, CCX launched the Chicago Climate Exchange Offsets Registry Program for verified emission reductions (VERs) based on a series of established offset project protocols.

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