Biodiversity > UK nature credit company raises £470,000 in third investment round

UK nature credit company raises £470,000 in third investment round

Published 16:50 on November 21, 2023  /  Last updated at 16:50 on November 21, 2023  / Thomas Cox /  Biodiversity, EMEA, International

UK-based CreditNature has closed its third funding round at £470,000, increasing its valuation to almost £5 million, the company has said.

UK-based CreditNature has closed its third funding round at £470,000, increasing its valuation to almost £5 million, the company has said.

Three private investors led the funding round, including Tatjana Greil-Castro, co-head of public markets at investment firm Muzinich & Co, for an undisclosed sum.

CreditNature’s platform aims to drive investment into biodiversity-boosting land assets via nature credits, which it calls ‘nature impact units’.

“We are delighted to have the support of our private investors, following an incredible year of growth and scale where CreditNature now has a pre-seed valuation of almost £5 million,” said Cain Blythe, founder of the company.

“This investment puts us in a strong position to support the private sector to invest with confidence, in international biodiversity and ecosystem recovery projects, and at the same time help guide government and policy makers accordingly,” Blythe added.

The latest announcement follows initial investment from the Scottish government of over £500,000. CreditNature won a contract to establish a market for private biodiversity investment, with the first credits to be issued under the Natural Asset Recovery Investment Analytics framework (NARIA) to activities in Scotland.

However, the company also has projects “emerging” in countries in Europe and Africa, it said. It has 75,000 hectares of land in the pipeline for recovery, according to its website.

CreditNature’s units are underpinned by NARIA version 2.1, which it distributed widely in August. The framework is due for independent verification by the end of this year.

The organisation will also offer a bundled opportunity where the nature impact units can be tied to a carbon credit earned under an established standard.

In addition, the framework can be used in the issuance of nature performance bonds as well as for risk management and disclosure purposes and investment ratings.

Two assessment analytics will form the basis of credit issuances:

  • The CreditNature Ecosystem Integrity Index (EII)
  • The CreditNature Ecosystem Management Rating (EMR)

By Thomas Cox – t.cox@carbon-pulse.com

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