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Image Credits:Beatriz González, Seaya VC
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According to a recent Dealroom report on the Spanish tech ecosystem , the combined enterprisingness note value of Spanish startupssurpassed€100 billion in 2023 . In the latest check of this up vogue , Madrid - base VC fundSeayahas shut Seaya Andromeda , an “ Article 9 ” € 300 million climate tech fund ground out of Madrid .
clause 9 consult to theEU ’s Sustainable Finance Disclosures Regulation Act , which puts the incumbrance on investment firms to ensure their investments have a positive impingement on society or the surround .
Seaya has been around for 12 years , chiefly focalise on mission - driven inauguration in Europe and LatAm . The fresh “ Andromeda ” fund will invest in ontogenesis companies that specialize in muscularity transition , decarbonization , sustainable food value Sir Ernst Boris Chain , and the rotary economy .
The business firm said the new climate fund will deploy between € 7 million and € 40 million as a first check ; will retain majuscule for follow - ons ; and plans to make 25 investments by the last of 2027 . So far , five investments have been made from the fund ( see below ) .
Seaya was launch back in 2013 by former private equity investor Beatriz González , who got into climate and sustainable investment after support a recycled clothing stock . She antecedently work for Morgan Stanley , Excel Partners and Darby Overseas Investments in the U.S. After that she became a music director of Telefónica ’s pension investment trust , leading its substitute assets program .
Under González , Seaya has invested in climate technical school company , including Biome Makers , Clarity.ai , Crowdfarming , Descartes , RatedPower , Samara , and galvanizing car charging Stations of the Cross troupe Wallbox ( which went public on the New York Stock Exchange in 2021 ) .
Over a call , I asked González if she thought there is a special vantage in having a fund out of Spain tacking climate tech , ease up the body politic ’s proximity to some of the bad effect of a changing climate , such as uttermost passion , drought , wildfires and storms .
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“ It ’s a beneficial question , ” she say . “ If you think about energy transition and decarbonization , coming from Southern Europe , peculiarly Spain , we do see that we are better suited for two reason . One is because Southern Europe is birth more extreme heat wave . So clearly , there is much more societal consciousness . But we also think that we have militant advantages in the industry that we are targeting .
“ We ’ve been pioneer in renewable vigour , so we have the talent and we have the self-aggrandising companies in the manufacturing of motorcar portion . So we have a freehanded industrial base . The same with agriculture and existent estate picture . So we do consider that we have the industry expertise and gift coming from Southern Europe , especially , and Spain , that does give us a flake of advantage . ”
I also require what kind of expertise they have that will permit them to make deep technical school investment funds decision about clime technical school .
“ We have a couple of engineers so we have that in - house expertise , but in our LP connection we have big European Union banks like Santander which do project finance for DOE or factories . So having access to that knowledge helps us do the due diligence and move much faster . ”
Thus far , Seaya has used that knowledge to invest in several relevant companies . Spain - base augmented - reality skill training solutionSeabery , for model , developed AR software and hardware for training welders , mean they do n’t involve to expend real welding to train , thus reducing carbon emission by 95 % per welding academic term .
It has also adorn in U.K.-based AI - powered waste management startupRecycleyein February 2022 , which builds golem to sort wish-wash for reprocess .
In San Francisco , the firm invested inPachama , a mood tech troupe that uses data to avow the quality of carbon credits and activate the launch of new carbon paper credit projection .
The news of the Modern monetary fund come other signs of the southerly European backing renaissance . Only last workweek , Plus Partnerslaunchedin Barcelona , aiming to drum up a $ 30 million to $ 50 million fund .
The annual“State of European Tech ” reportfor 2023 also establish Spain ’s ecosystem to be in fourth place overall and say it had thehighestnumber of inauguration funding last year .
