1 Dec 2023
- Executive Chairman Mohammed Alardhi: Addressing climate change is a global challenge, and the private sector has a clear role to play in funding the decarbonization journey.
- Launched in partnership with an anchor commitment from Mumtalakat
- Platform builds upon Investcorp’s leadership and commitment towards sustainability and climate finance in providing capital and expertise to companies addressing decarbonization and climate change
New York, November 30, 2023 – Investcorp, a global investment manager specializing in alternative investments, today announced the launch of its new Climate Solutions investment platform, anchored by Mumtalakat, the Kingdom of Bahrain’s sovereign wealth fund, and other Bahrain-based institutions. The newly launched platform will leverage the firm’s global network and deep sector expertise to identify opportunities for private capital investment in companies that provide products, services and technology that support decarbonization and address the impacts of climate change.
The overarching objective of the Climate Solutions Investment Platform is to accelerate the global transition to a zero-carbon economy with a focus on the deployment and rapid scaling of commercially proven climate solutions that have the potential to transform industries across four key impact pathways: Carbon Management, Buildings, Transportation, and Food & Agriculture. Investcorp believes that an additional key aspect of the underlying investment strategy stems from the recognition that mobilizing the commercial scale-up of such solutions will enable broad-based availability of much needed decarbonization products and services at attractive price points for the Global South. By doing so, the platform has the potential to help the region better manage and mitigate the challenges of climate change which are impacting the area disproportionately, while accelerating overall global emissions reductions.
The Climate Solutions Investment Platform will make equity investments in businesses at the growth “inflection point” where they have matured past many of the risks that face earlier stage ventures and are instead focused on successfully managing and minimizing the execution risks associated with expansion. Investcorp’s long history in middle-market investments and the firm’s well-developed global network ideally position the platform to support such founders and companies in their expansion plans.
Mohammed Alardhi, Executive Chairman of Investcorp said, “Addressing climate change is a global challenge, and the private sector has a clear role to play in financing the decarbonization journey. Beyond the long-term positive impact on the environment, we believe there are real and concrete opportunities for investors to target strong returns through climate investment. Consistent with our history as a pioneer and innovator in the field of alternative investing, we have launched this platform because we recognized the potential for growth in this space and believe that we can continue to do well by doing good”.
He added, “we are understandably proud to be launching our Climate Solutions Investment Platform on the eve of COP-28, at a critical point in time when world leaders, global and regional businesses, and the general public have come together to explore climate solutions. The UAE hosting this year’s COP indicates the readiness of the region to address these challenges head on, in what we are all hoping will be one of the most significant COPs since the Paris Agreement.”
Rishi Kapoor, Co-CEO of Investcorp, added “Investcorp’s investment processes developed over our forty-plus year history, our global experience investing in mid-sized founder-led companies, our commitment and leadership in climate and sustainability, and our unique presence in the Gulf which is undoubtedly one of the critical regions for energy transition and climate change, will be keys to our success. We’re also very pleased to partner with Mumtalakat as an initial anchor and the first of what we hope will be many investors as the world pivots to climate-focused investing to address ongoing challenges. We aim to capture the once-in-a generation investment opportunity this presents to seek highly attractive risk-adjusted returns over the long term.”
James Socas, who joined Investcorp earlier this year as a Managing Director, will lead the business as Head of Climate Solutions. James was previously a Managing Director at Blackstone, where he sourced, managed and led growth and buyout transactions in the software and technology industries, including the emerging climate solutions category. He has been an active growth investor for more than twenty years at leading investment and advisory firms.
“Climate is the single biggest challenge and consequently one of the top long-term investment themes today. Successfully addressing climate change and the energy transition will require the capital, innovation and commitment of the private sector,” said James Socas. “Investcorp believes global investment leaders must play a pivotal role funding and scaling necessary climate solutions, and I am proud to lead this important new initiative for the firm.”
Successful decarbonization and the mitigation of current climate challenges will require new products, services, technologies, and analytics, many of which are at the early stages of commercial deployment. The decarbonization of all sectors of the global economy will require a significant amount of capital – estimated to be $9.2 trillion of annual investment through 2050.[1] Leading businesses that emerge will need funding and operational support to rapidly scale to meet emissions reduction targets and respond to accelerating climate effects. Additionally, many existing businesses that are not directly focused on climate solutions will seek capital and expertise to reposition or restructure their solutions or services to address large and rapidly growing decarbonization and climate-driven markets. The launch of the Climate Solutions Investment Platform further builds upon Investcorp’s commitment to sustainability, by deploying value-added investment towards scaling up high-performing sustainable businesses, driving greater social impact, and allocating resources and capital to accelerate decarbonization both within the firm and across Investcorp’s global investment portfolios. Investcorp’s work was recently recognized by Forbes Middle East naming the firm one of the Top 10 sustainability leaders in the investment world. Earlier this year, Investcorp announced its sponsorship of the 28th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (“COP28”) taking place in Dubai, United Arab Emirates from November 30 to December 12, 2023.
[1] “The net-zero transition: what it would cost, what it could bring.” McKinsey & Company, January 2022.