ImpactAlpha’s deal news coverage for the week:
Agrifood investing. BluePeak Private Capital made a $25 million investment in Singapore’s Robust International to expand agrifood processing and exporting in Côte d’Ivoire, Nigeria, Burkina Faso and Mozambique.
Artificial intelligence. Microsoft-led $30 billion AI infrastructure fund raises climate questions…Salesforce Ventures is launching a second $500 million fund to invest in startups helping to balance “trust, growth, and innovation” in generative AI. “Values drive value, and we know trust and responsibility are good for the world – and good for business,” said Salesforce Ventures’ Paul Drews (see related, “With stakes in Anthropic, impact investors seek a seat at the AI table”).
Energy transition. The US Department of Energy’s Loan Programs Office approved a $72.8 million loan guarantee for a solar + storage minigrid on the Tribal lands of the Viejas Band near Alpine, Calif. The project, which will support the Kumeyaay Indian Nation’s energy sovereignty, is backed by US Bancorp Impact Finance and Starbucks, and has grant funding from the California Energy Commission.
Green infrastructure. ADB mobilized more than $86 million for electrifying public transport in India… The national development bank of Brazil, Bndes, opened a one billion real ($180 million) low-cost credit program for sustainable agroforestry and reforestation projects in the Amazon basin.
Impact funds. Blume Equity, a women-led growth equity fund for climate tech startups in Europe, notched a €25 million ($27.9 million) commitment from British Patient Capital. Australian asset manager Queensland Investment Corporation is also backing the firm’s first fund… Mumbai-based Omnivore raised $5 million from French development finance institution Proparco for its third fund, Agritech and Climate Sustainability… Paris-based Eiffel Investment Group raised €777 million ($864.7 million) for its second impact debt fund to invest in Europe’s growing businesses… Rethink Impact raised $250 million for its third fund to invest in women-led startups.
Inclusive economy. Boulder, Colo.-based Besolo raised $1.5 million to help self-employed workers access benefit plans, handle taxes and accounting, and manage other facets of their businesses… ClassBank snagged pre-seed funding to support financial literacy among students in underserved communities… Germany’s Smalt scored €8 million for green workforce training… Platform for Social Impact secured an additional $57 million, including $30 million from the US Economic Development Agency, to build a center to house its OASIS Project (see, “In Puerto Rico, mobilizing billions for economic mobility with capital from across the spectrum”)… S2G Ventures backed Amperage to bridge the digital divide in rural America.
Investing in health. Field Intelligence in Nigeria secured $11 million from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to expand the delivery of pharmaceuticals and maternal medical supplies using its software and logistics service (see, “COVID pandemic gives Africa’s health tech startups a chance to shine“)… Lightsmith and Chan Zuckerberg invested $16.6 million in Beep for in-home health in Brazil.
Investing in water. UK-based Water Unite Impact secured $7.5 million from the US International Development Finance Corp. to provide growth financing to water companies in emerging markets.
Low-carbon transition. CarbonEthics, an Indonesia-based developer and operator of nature-based decarbonization projects, clinched $2.1 million in seed financing from Intudo Ventures and angel investors… London-based carbon accounting platform Zevero raised $7 million in a seed round led by Spiral Capital… The US Department of Energy’s Loan Programs Office conditionally approved a $1.6 billion loan guarantee for Wabash Valley Resources to develop a carbon-negative ammonia production facility in West Terre Haute, Ind. The $2.4 billion project would repurpose an industrial gasifier site and store the captured carbon.
Sustainable fashion. Evoralis landed $2.8 million to develop enzymes to break down discarded textiles.
