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Venture Capital for Circularity
Circularity.fm explores Venture Capital Funds investing in circular business models and startups.
The Venture Capital Perspective on Circular Economy Startups
For some, the circular economy is a necessity.
For some, the circular economy is an opportunity.
And for some, it’s both.
Venture capital funds have an unvarnished view of circular business models. They want to grow their investment. At the same time, some want to contribute to decarbonisation, greater resource efficiency and waste avoidance.
The podcast series VC for Circularity describes how venture capital funds are looking at circular start-ups and the circular economy.
From 13 May 2025, an interview on the topic will be published weekly.
VC for Circularity Map 2025
Download as PDF here.
Investment phase
In early summer 2025, I was able to identify 140 active Venture Capital funds that invest in start-ups with a circular business model. Not all of them cover every investment phase:
- 86 invest in the early stage
- 18 invest in the growth phase
- 36 invest across multiple phases
The boundaries here are rather schematic and fluid in reality. Opportunities and liquidity as well as strategic adjustments create smooth transitions between the categories.
Investment strategy
Circularity plays a different role for the funds:
- 19 invest exclusively in circular startups. Regenerative business practices are included here.
- 58 have a few focus areas, of which the circular economy is one. Often these funds have a broader sustainability, decarbonisation or impact focus.
- 32 of the funds have a broad investment strategy that includes the circular economy. The funds listed here are not necessarily known for their circular investment strategy. However, in recent years, these funds have made investments in start-ups with circular ambitions.
These boundaries are also blurred and serve more as a rough guide than a strict classification. Ultimately, funds and start-ups have to be an individual match anyway.
Moreover, 31 strategic VC funds operated by companies have a track record of investing in circular economy driven startups.
This overview is based on personal research, supplemented by suggestions from wepa ventures and neosfer.
A fund is missing? A classification is not correct? Contact me and I will adjust it.
Venture Capital Funds in Searchable List
The VC for Circularity Map can be sorted, filtered and browsed via the following table:
Podcast Conversations
From 13 May, Circularity.fm will publish weekly interviews on the venture capital perspective on the circular economy.
Follow Circularity.fm on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, your own podcast reader or on this website.
You can find the latest episodes here. The newsletter informs you in time about new publications and gives you access to one-page summaries of the interviews.
Episodes
9 episodes in this series
Selecting the right investors for your materials startup with Jakob Röskamp from Traceless Materials
Traceless CFO Jakob Röskamp reveals off-take agreements required for €36.6M Series A, equity+debt+grants mix, customer validation drives investor confidence.
How Purpose-Driven Investors and Impact Founders Accelerate Systemic Change with Tina Dreimann from better ventures
better ventures' Tina Dreimann reveals integral investing where revenue and impact grow together, 100+ angels, 51 investments from 200 monthly applications.
Critical Materials, Supply Chain Infrastructure, and Modular Solutions in the Circular Economy with Aly Bryan from Closed Loop Partners
Closed Loop's Aly Bryan reveals small vs large-loop circularity, 50/50 hardware-software split, modular subscale processing, critical minerals recovery focus.
How to Get VC funding for Circular and Impact-driven Startups with Charlotte Lafont from Ring Capital
Ring Capital's Charlotte Lafont reveals 50% carried interest tied to impact KPIs audited annually, United for Impact with 55 VCs, and product-market fit focus.
How a global leader in building solutions invests in circular startups with Bengt Steinbrecher from Holcim Maqer Ventures
Holcim MAQER's Bengt Steinbrecher reveals 10M ton demolition material reuse targeting 20M by 2030, Neustark's CO2 storage, and venture clienting tests first.
Leveraging New Technologies to Decarbonise the Economy with Mark Windeknecht from World Fund | Venture Capital
World Fund's Mark Windeknecht reveals Cylib's 80% CO2 reduction, why no green premium matters, and Planet A Foods uses food waste for chocolate alternatives.
Plastic waste as a business opportunity in Asia & Latin America with Ellen Martin from Circulate Capital
Circulate Capital's Ellen Martin reveals vertically integrated models win in Asia/Latin America, why Tridi Oasis scaled 4x post-exit, and PLACES Calculator.
Investing in Circular Business Models in North America & Europe by Maya Hassa, Circular Innovation Fund
Circular Innovation Fund's Maya Hassa reveals Europe sees double the deal flow vs North America, why localized models work better, and Series A/B focus areas.