Natural Capital Research Limited (Natcap) has raised $10 million in an oversubscribed Series A funding round. New funding comes from André Hoffmann, Norinchukin Capital, Yeo Ventures, and Pelican Ag. Former CEO of Refinitiv David Craig also participated, and the fundraise also includes follow-on investments from Oxford Science Enterprises, funds advised by MW&L Capital Partners, and Alea Iacta Est, all of which participated in the company’s 2023 £2.5 million seed round.
The funding from this most recent raise will help accelerate Natcap’s rapid growth supporting organizations to understand their nature-related risks and opportunities. The company was founded in 2018 by Professor Baroness Kathy Willis at the University of Oxford and others, with the mission to integrate nature intelligence into business decision making. Today, the company is working to scale the delivery of high-quality nature data to serve companies seeking to measure and understand their own nature related risk. Natcap has developed an innovative platform that brings together the world’s best science, data and technology, and ultimately empowers companies to measure, report and act on nature-related risks and opportunities.
This mission is increasingly important as the repercussions of nature-risk become more and more prominent and as nature reporting becomes mandatory around the world. New policies in the EU, such as the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation, will require reporting. Alongside this, voluntarily reporting initiatives, such as the recommendations under the new Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) are also putting increasing pressure on companies to better record and communicate their nature related risk.
As measurement and reporting requirements continue to emerge, the need for tools to enable this is also growing. Investor André Hoffmann, Vice-Chairman, Roche Holding AG who serves as a senior advisor to the TNFD explains that Natcap fills a critical gap: helping businesses to measure nature risk and opportunity at scale.
The company currently serves 20+ organizations, including collaborating with Tesco’s Nature Programme, and a partnership with MS&AD Insurance Group Holdings. Natcap was recently selected as one of just four UK tech companies to receive government support from the UK-APAC Tech Growth Programme for expansion into the Japanese market.
But companies aren’t the only ones recognizing the need for these services – investors are, as well, as exemplified by Natcap’s recent raise.
![Chris is founder and General Partner at Pelican Ag – the UK’s first venture fund investing in regenerative agriculture and sustainable food systems. Before this he grew Pelican Founders as a leading impact investment advisor for sustainable food and ag companies. Working with over 35 companies which received over £350m in subsequent funding. Previously he spent 16 years at Blackrock, Jupiter and CCAM, where he raised $1.8bn for 5 funds. He’s trustee to a 7k acre commercial farm in Scotland. Steers Patagonia’s 1% for the Planet UK initiative and is passionate about gut health.](https://rfsi-forum.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/32/2023/01/Speaker_Christopher-Ramsay-300x300.png)
Christopher Ramsay, Founding Partner at Pelican Ag
“We’re particularly excited about Natcap’s science-based approach to embedding nature in business decision-making. The company’s platform makes understanding environmental impact, addressing TNFD, CSRD and beyond, approachable and actionable for a diverse range of clients, enabling nature-positive change on a global scale,” says Christopher Ramsay, founding partner at Pelican Ag.
For investors like Pelican Ag, André Hoffmann and others investing nature, climate and sustainable agriculture, an investment in Natcap makes a lot of sense.
“This investment sits well within our thesis and “nature-first” strategy,” explains Julia Webber of Pelican Ag. “We aim to support game-changing solutions that prioritize nature and regeneration, and Natcap’s leadership in nature intelligence makes it a great addition to our growing portfolio.”
Sebastian Leape, CEO of Natcap adds, “It has been truly exciting to see the level of investor interest in our company, particularly in a less-than-optimal fundraising environment globally. We see our investors’ support as a further endorsement of the market need for what we offer: a simple, straightforward solution for companies grappling with nature risks and reporting needs under CSRD and TNFD. We look forward to scaling our offering, allowing more organizations to integrate nature into their decision-making, and accelerating the world’s transition to a nature-positive future.”