Key Takeaways:
- First Close Announcement: Natural Ventures announces the first close of its inaugural impact-focused venture capital fund.
- Focus on Sustainability: The fund targets high-technology solutions to address global food and water security.
- Strategic Location: Headquarters in Abu Dhabi, benefiting from the region’s strategic importance in food and water sectors.
- Anchor Investors: Key investors include Helm AG, Chemovarteq, and a strategic UAE investor.
- Initial Portfolio: The fund launches with an initial portfolio of four leading technology companies.
Natural Ventures, an impact-focused venture capital fund dedicated to addressing global food and water security, is pleased to announce the first close of its inaugural fund. The fund aims to accelerate the transition to a sustainable, healthy, and economical food and water supply by investing in high-technology solutions.
Impact-Driven Investment Approach
Natural Ventures takes an impact-driven approach to investing, focusing on technologies that address the interconnected challenges of climate change, population growth, and the transformation of water and food systems. The team comprises seasoned investors with an excellent track record, experienced water and food experts, entrepreneurs, and leadership developers. Their goal is to invest in scalable technologies with proven commercial traction that directly impact water and food security.
Strategic Headquarters in Abu Dhabi
The fund selected Abu Dhabi and the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) as its headquarters due to the region’s strategic importance in food and water. The recent launch of the AgriFood Growth and Water Abundance (AGWA) cluster, led by the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development (ADDED) and Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO), highlights the region’s commitment and is expected to result in USD 34 billion of investment by 2045.
Key Anchor Investors
Natural Ventures’ anchor investors include Helm AG of Germany, Chemovarteq, a Swiss-based family office, and a strategic UAE investor. Stephan Schnabel, Chairman and CEO of Helm, commented, “Our investment in the Natural Ventures fund reflects our commitment to addressing future needs and is another excellent example of our commitment to growing through partnerships.”
Strategic Partnerships
The fund benefits from close strategic partnerships with two global sector specialists:
- AgBioScout: The world’s leading global Agtech scouting and advisory company, providing deep technical AgTech sector knowledge.
- Isle Utilities: The world’s leading innovation consultancy specializing in the development and commercialization of emerging technologies in the water and environmental sectors.
Stephen Pearce, Co-founder and Managing Partner of Chemovarteq, added, “With AgBioScout’s broad sector knowledge in Agriculture, Isle’s sector expertise in Water, and Chemovarteq’s associated knowledge and networks, we collectively have a level of sector expertise, resource, and experience with networks of scale that is truly unique and positions this fund to be a best-in-class investment proposition for all participants.”
Launch of Initial Portfolio
Natural Ventures Fund I launches with an initial portfolio of four leading technology companies:
- Active Membranes
- Brevel
- Constellr
- N-Drip
The fund also boasts a strong pipeline of new investments. Mark Jenkins, a Managing Partner of Natural Ventures, commented, “As an impact-driven team, Natural Ventures welcomes our exceptionally strong strategic investors and leading AgTech and water industry partners to our collaborative investment model. Our combined strengths and alignment of purpose are striking as we look to invest in exceptional management teams with innovative solutions to solve global issues of water and food security. We look forward to working together to support our portfolio companies.”
