HomeFundingUK startup Clim8 Invest smashes Crowdcube campaign by 600% with €2.7 million...

UK startup Clim8 Invest smashes Crowdcube campaign by 600% with €2.7 million to grow its digital investment platform

As interest in sustainable investing continues to grow, Clim8 Invest, a digital investment platform to help consumers invest exclusively in companies focused on tackling the climate crisis, has raised around €2.7 million in funding. 

Investment has come from a range of venture funds, cleantech and technology experts and more than 1900 retail investors via the Crowdcube platform. Investors in this round include 7percent Ventures, Basil Capital, Evergreen Fund, EcoSummit Ventures and several ex partners of McKinsey.

This total exceeds its initial target by 600% and combined with a previous round of around €2.2 million means that the company has now raised around €4.9 million to help fulfill its mission to empower people to make a positive impact on the environment, while delivering healthy financial gains for their personal futures. 

“We are currently seeing a significant interest in sustainable assets. There is a positive dynamic for those companies that have green products and are well run, with the right governance,” said Duncan Grierson, the CEO of Clim8. “Awareness of the threat of climate change is realigning investment profiles towards sustainability and we are proud to be a part of that movement.”

The Clim8 investment platform, which was founded in 2019 and has begun its rollout to the 12,000 strong waitlist, is a ‘pureplay’ investment platform focused only on sustainable businesses that have green products and services. The Clim8 investment team are specialists in sustainability and don’t merely screen out fossil fuels, like many ‘ESG’ funds, but instead proactively pursue companies that are ‘planet positive’. 

Clim8’s goal is to move billions into clean energy and truly green, sustainable businesses via a growing portfolio of companies involved in clean energy, clean technology, electric mobility, sustainable food and recycling.

The success of the company’s Crowdcube campaigns is proof of the growing global trend for investment into sustainable and ethical businesses, while also showing confidence in returns. The startup signals that it follows a renewed focus of global institutions on climate change, even during the COVID-19 crisis, and highlights that a recent HSBC report showed that companies with a sustainability focus have outperformed other stocks in 2020. 

Andrew Scott, Partner at 7percent Ventures, a venture capital fund backed by the British Business Bank that has invested twice now in Clim8, said: “At 7percent we’ve learned that investing at an early stage is all about the Founder. Their passion, energy, experience, and ambition. The moment Duncan starts talking about why he founded Clim8, you can feel his obsession to build a product that will have a real impact on climate change. We invested early because of this passion, the world-class team it has attracted, and our shared mission to help fix our planet.”

Luke Lang, co-founder and Chief Marketing Officer of Crowdcube, added: “We’ve seen that businesses aligning profits with principles are hugely popular among investors, and Clim8’s mission to help tackle climate change is at its core. The huge success of this raise with Crowdcube not only evidences the heightened interest in investing in sustainable businesses but allows Clim8’s community to be a part of the global movement to make a positive impact on climate change.”

Mike Barry, former Head of Sustainability at M&S and Clim8 Advisor and Investor added: “We need a new economy. One that works for everybody. And that’s what Clim8 does. It empowers people to be part of the economic upside of change and build a better future. One that’s low carbon, fair, equitable, and commits to wellbeing.”

Charlotte Tucker
Charlotte Tucker
Charlotte is the previous Editor at EU-Startups.com. She spends her time scouting the next big story, managing our contributor team, and getting excited about social impact ventures. She has previously worked as a Communications Consultant for number of European Commission funded startup projects.
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