Smart green VCs you should know
There are many smart green VCs in Europe and the US that back startups in energy, mobility, buildings, cities, materials, food and circular economy to create impact as well as environmental, financial and strategic returns for their fund investors (LPs). In the VC food chain, early stage investors prefer to invest, at lower valuations and higher risk, in the Seed, Series A and Series B financing rounds of young startups working on product market fit and traction (users, customers, revenues). On the other hand, late stage VCs like shorter holding periods and time-to-exit and, consequently, advanced startups with more than €5M revenues, experienced management teams and fast growth. The existence of KPIs, ideally going up over time, makes the life of every investor easier. Facing climate change, technology revolution and global competition, the majority of corporates have adopted corporate venturing and open innovation strategies in order to invest in and do business with startups. The result are different investment strategies and sometimes competing portfolios that startups should know before pitching. Let’s co-invest and meet at Ecosummit Berlin 2020.
Read moreFaster exits, higher returns – Alois Flatz discusses the investment strategy of Zouk Capital
Ecosummit TV: Zouk’s Alois Flatz talks about cleantech venture capital 2.0 and the mega trends he takes into consideration for his investment strategy. As we have seen with the feed-in-tariffs, government regulations are in most cases temporary. For startups it’s dangerous to rely on governments as they will change their opinion when the next crisis with huge financial impact is upon them. Alois looks for business models that generate cash from early on and can be grown at low CAPEX for the startup and its customers deploying the new technology. The late stage venture capitalist believes that a top management team at all times and a long-term strategy focused on the exit are among the key success factors. European entrepreneurs and top managers should continue to optimise resource productivity because its benefits will easily survive the next boom and bust cycle.
Read moreECO11 Cleantech VC Panel showcasing Taylor Wessing, WHEB Partners, Zouk Capital and Climate Change Capital
This new Ecosummit TV episode showcases the views of 3 leading Cleantech VCs and the law firm Taylor Wessing on the hot trends in the Cleantech VC industry. Enjoy Peter Hellich (Taylor Wessing), Joerg Sperling (WHEB Partners), Felix von Schubert (Zouk Capital) and Bruno Derungs (Climate Change Capital), moderated by Jan Michael Hess (Ecosummit), talking about the deals they make and the deals they would like to make.
Read more