Startup/Scale-up

The digital lender recently became the first company to establish an EU-wide microfinance partnership with the European Investment Fund aimed at closing a €400bn funding gap for small and medium-sized businesses.

Dutch company Gradyent is being backed by a range of investors, including Blue Earth Capital, SEB Greentech and Eneco, to expand its energy saving software.

The investment aims to support female-led enterprises and bolster climate resilience across Africa, as part of a broader mission to drive sustainable economic growth, job creation, and financial inclusion in developing markets.

The fund, which focuses on boosting access to solar power across sub-Saharan Africa, was backed by a range of private investors and development finance institutions.  

SDG 16 is among the most underfunded of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals and needs greater attention amid rising levels of violence, inequality and corruption, say impact investors.

The pension asset manager made the deal on behalf of Dutch healthcare scheme PFWZ, which has allocated €1bn to the energy transition over the next few years.

The UK-based startup, whose environmental DNA technology is able to produce data on thousands of species at once, will use the funding to scale up its biodiversity monitoring platform.

Both lenders aim to drive inclusive growth across the UK by unlocking funding for underserved small businesses that struggle to access finance.

The Dutch firm’s second fund focuses on investments in early-stage digital and sustainability ventures in north-western Europe.

The financing of the Dutch life sciences company is supported by the European Commission under its InvestEU programme. Lumicks aims to impact more than one million lives by 2027.