Contrarian Ventures Lands €25 Million From The EU For Next Fund

Contrarian Ventures, a local weather tech funding agency, has secured €25 million from the European Funding Fund to again European start-ups tackling the local weather disaster.

The fund, led by Rokas Peciulaitis and Tomas Kemtys, will again start-ups on the seed stage and is elevating additional backing from buyers with a tough cap of €100 million.

The European Funding Fund’s financing comes by way of the European Fee’s InvestEU program. Different buyers embrace the Polish sovereign wealth fund PFR, Molten Ventures and the Grantham Basis.

Peciulaitis stated there may be extra momentum behind local weather funds with regards to elevating cash from restricted companions.

“This isn’t a mere pattern, it’s undoubtedly a class in its personal proper. The final couple of years have proven how huge the potential this class [has],” he stated.

That is Contrarian’s second fund. It has beforehand backed firms like e-bike maker Zoomo and carbon offsetting start-up BeZero Carbon.

It invests in sectors like vitality, carbon markets and mobility and most sectors that fall underneath the local weather tech investing technique, except meals and agri.

“Our portfolio is break up systematically. We do {hardware}, hardware-enabled software program and we do software program. The break up goes 20/20/60, extra in direction of the software program aspect of issues,” Peciulaitis stated.

It backs firms on the seed stage, that are “pre-product-market match”, and assists with features like advertising and marketing and networking, together with via its annual convention.

The EIF funding within the fund is a part of its mandate to again climate-focused enterprises. No less than 16% of its actions have to be focused at local weather and surroundings points.

“[Contrarian’s] first fund showcased their means to construct a portfolio of thrilling vitality, transport and infrastructure startups and is a marker of the workforce’s resourcefulness and resilience,” stated EIF chief govt Marjut Falkstedt of its funding within the fund.

Co-founder Kemtys stated that round €57 million has been closed from companions to this point forward of its €100 million exhausting cap that it goals to succeed in by 12 months’s finish. One funding has been made via the second fund to this point however the fund will not be disclosing its title.

Whereas the founders of the fund are bullish on the prospects in local weather know-how, their portfolio has come up in opposition to its personal challenges together with the e-bike start-up Zoomo, which served supply firms which have undergone a downturn within the final 12 months.

“The entire last-mile supply area went via a loopy shift within the final 12 to 24 months,” Kemtys stated. “It’s been difficult for the entire business, there’s been a whole lot of consolidation and bankruptcies but in addition [an effect] on folks serving these markets. Zoomo had some lay-offs, they began trying and raised a spherical and at the moment are centered on unit economics and profitability but in addition diversifying their enterprise.”

Contrarian has been lively since 2017 however in recent times enterprise capital funds have more and more turned their focus onto climate-related investments, with the emergence of devoted funds.

World Fund additionally acquired funding from the European Funding Fund late final 12 months. It too is backing start-ups addressing local weather challenges however its remit extends to meals firms the place it has made just a few investments.