The index, which features a due diligence system, aims to facilitate the procurement of responsible timber products and increase liquidity, supply and demand for this market segment while promoting transparency, legality and sustainability, BVRio says.

The platform will also feature optional services such as grading and quality control, field audits and due diligence, receivables finance, insurance and logistics.

BVRio said it believed the tool would be particularly useful to buyers and traders operating in Europe and the U.S., where they have to ensure compliance with the E.U. Timber Regulation and the U.S. Lacey Act, reducing their exposure to the illegal timber trade.

The system was originally designed to screen Brazilian timber but the U.K. government has helped adapt it to screen responsible timber from West Africa, starting with Ghana, and Peru.

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