We are today excited to announce that Molten has participated in BeZero's $50 million Series B round led by US investment firm Quantum Energy Partners, with strategic investment from EDF Group, Hitachi Ventures and Intercontinental Exchange (ICE).
BeZero, the carbon ratings agency, will use the funds to drive innovation in environmental markets through the development of ratings, risk and analytics tools. As a result of the round, the company will now be able to invest in creating risk-based products for other ecosystem markets, and open offices in New York and Singapore. It will continue to expand its proprietary automation toolkit, deepen its earth observation capabilities, and invest in top talent to further build upon its offering as the leading ratings and research house in the Voluntary Carbon Market.
The latest funding round brings the total raised by the company to more than $70 million in the past year. It follows the Series A funding announcement led by Molten Ventures in May of this year, with Norrsken VC and Extantia also participating.
As an increasing number of companies set Net Zero targets and invest in carbon credits to support them, the Voluntary Carbon Market is set to grow rapidly. Analysis shows it could reach $50bn by 2030. Its growth presents an opportunity to channel significant amounts of capital into environmental projects, accelerating climate action and delivering strong financial returns.
BeZero Carbon provides more coverage than any other carbon ratings agency backed by a team of world leading climate scientists, earth observation specialists, data scientists and financial analysts to improve decision making in the market, with around a sixth of employees holding PhDs.
BeZero Carbon has a global client base including major institutions from the energy, commodities and financial sectors as well as leading climate platforms, including Watershed, Anglo American, and Equinor and Glencore. BeZero Carbon’s ratings are also available on leading carbon exchanges, such as CBL’s Xpansiv platform, and marketplaces, such as Cloverly and Patch.
Through BeZero Carbon’s partnership with ICE, a leading global provider of data, technology and market infrastructure, the companies will work to launch innovative standardised exchange traded products. Hitachi Ltd. and EDF Group both plan to use BeZero’s ratings to bolster their own sustainability initiatives and support their pathways to Net Zero and services for their customers. The partnerships will also support BeZero Carbon’s expansion into Asian and Continental European markets.
Tommy Ricketts, CEO and co-founder of BeZero Carbon, said: “We have a once in a generation opportunity to build environmental and ecological restoration into the heart of the economic model. Starting with carbon, effective ecosystem markets have huge potential to accelerate the Net Zero transition and generate economic prosperity. Developing the information infrastructure that allows these markets to take off is fundamental to their growth. The raise will ensure we can continue to invest in our ratings, risk and analytics tools to make this vision a reality.”
Sebastien Cross, Chief Innovation Officer and co-founder of BeZero Carbon, said: "We are grateful to our investors, clients and partners who have recognised that the team and tools we have built at BeZero Carbon will transform the Voluntary Carbon Market. We are thrilled to continue our expansion with offices in the US and Asia, delivering world-leading insight and analysis that powers global environmental markets."
George Chalmers, Head of Climate at Molten Ventures, said: "Our conviction in BeZero has continued to grow following our investment earlier this year, driven by the execution of the team and the growing evidence that the VCM is a market at an inflection point. The series-B coming hot on the heels of the company's series-A is testament to the speed with which BeZero have established themselves as market leaders and the scale of the opportunity in carbon and new ecosystem markets."