Royalty-backed Lightrock packs $834 million into its first local weather fund • TechCrunch

Lightrock, the London-based backer of neobank Niyo and “wooden modification” firm Kebony, has secured about $834 million (€860 million) for a brand new fund centered on local weather tech. The non-public fairness and enterprise agency says it’s going to pump the cash into startups centered on areas equivalent to clear power, decarbonization and sustainable agriculture.

Lightrock plans to write down checks as small as $10 million, and as much as round $39 million, for startups in Europe and North America. Again in Might, the investor introduced its first fund for startups in Latin America.

Lightrock has ties to royalty by way of an internet of subsidiaries, which implies the cash it raised doubtless wasn’t too tough to seek out. The agency is owned by LGT, which makes investments for wealthy folks and establishments. LGT’s proprietor is the royal household of Liechtenstein, which has ramped up its environmental and social influence investments since that basically massive tax scandal.

LGT promotes itself as being centered on sustainability, and to its credit score, the agency has taken steps to restrict its local weather influence. Nonetheless, it hasn’t walked away from fossil fuels.

LGT invests in oil and fuel producers, as long as they’re “strongly dedicated to the power transition and have low revenues from oil and fuel manufacturing.” LGT’s insurance policies additionally allow investments in enterprise that earn income by way of thermal coal (restricted to as much as “5% of their complete revenues as of January).

Lightrock says the cash for its local weather fund comes from traders equivalent to LGT, a few of LGT’s shoppers, the Grantham Basis and Temasek, which is a holding firm owned by Singapore. Temasek’s portfolio consists of vital fuel and oil holdings, which drive local weather change.