- The impact fund invests directly in unlisted, innovative start-ups working to support Ocean health regeneration.
- 50% of the carried interest will be subject to the achievement of impact targets
SWEN Capital Partners, a provider of unlisted sustainable investment solutions, has raised a further €43 million from institutional investors globally for its Blue Ocean Fund in its latest funding round. The fund now stands at €95 million, making it one of the leading venture capitalist funds worldwide dedicated to ocean health. Launched less than 6 months ago, the Fund is well on track to reach its goal of €120 million this year.
BPI, the French Sovereign Investment Fund and Ifremer, the National Institute for Ocean Science, are among the latest investors to back the Blue Ocean strategy. They join a number of institutional investors including pension funds, insurance companies, banks and family offices across Europe and the US.
The Blue Ocean Fund was launched at the World Conservation Congress in September of last year and is recognised as a pioneer in ocean impact investing, with a specific focus on tackling three major issues effecting ocean health today: pollution, over-fishing, and climate change.
As a sanctuary of biodiversity, the ocean produces 50% of the oxygen we breathe and plays a crucial role in the fight against climate change, absorbing 93% of the excess heat produced by humans. Added to this is the economic challenge of potential losses due to the shortage of seafood products and the rise in sea level if climate change is not addressed, with current estimates of losses amounting to $400 billion per year by 2050.
The Blue Ocean Fund was created as a response to the urgent need for private capital to help reverse this trend. The Fund will deploy €120 million across 20 to 25 innovative start-ups companies dedicated to issues such as sustainable aquaculture, ocean data, plant and cell-based seafood, alternatives to single-use plastic, renewable marine energies and decarbonization of maritime transport.
Jérôme Delmas, CEO of SWEN Capital Partners comments – “In order to make progress, a sustainable Blue Economy is critical. Healthy oceans will continue to provide us with food, oxygen, transportation, recreation and climate regulation. Our Blue Ocean fund is at the heart of this dynamic and contributes to addressing these crucial issues for the planet, a world first. We would also like to thank the fund’s investors for showing their confidence in us, as well as the new French and European investors who were convinced by the relevance of our approach, which combines unlisted and an ever-stronger commitment to sustainable finance.”
François Houllier, Chairman and CEO of Ifremer comments: “Faced with the threats generated by human activity, Ifremer is convinced that research and innovation are key to ensuring the protection of the ocean. It is with this in mind that we wanted to strengthen our commitment by investing in the Blue Ocean fund. SWEN Capital Partners brings unique expertise to support European start-ups whose activity will have a positive impact on the health of the ocean.”
SWEN Capital Partners Impact framework encompasses all investments made through the impact strategy and it is designed to systematically address the 3 pillars of impact: Intentionality, additionality and measuring and reporting.
Christian Lim, Managing Director of the SWEN Blue Ocean team adds – “We believe ocean impact investing is on a path to becoming mainstream and we remain committed to playing our part in this evolution by providing an innovative platform to international institutional investors. Private capital has an essential role to play in driving both systemic impact and competitive market returns at scale.”
The Blue Ocean Fund has been classified as Article 9 compliant under the EU Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation. Its investments are aligned to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 14 and compliant with EU taxonomy criteria.
