Germany slows down climate start-ups
Europe has made the biggest gains worldwide in investments to combat climate change. However, Germany is not doing particularly well.
In 2016, 196 governments signed the Paris Climate Agreement, and five years later the effects are also evident in the start-up scene: while the figure was USD 6.6 billion in 2016, start-ups in the field of climate technology have already raised USD 32.3 billion in the first three quarters of 2021. Europe is proving to be the fastest growing continent, with investment capital almost doubling from USD 4.8 million in 2020 to USD 8 billion in 2021. After the USA and China, the most venture capital was distributed in Sweden, the UK, France and Germany. These are the findings of a study by data provider Dealroom and advertising agency London and Partners.
The country of inventors does not fare particularly well in comparison: since the Paris Climate Agreement was signed, Berlin has only produced 193 start-ups in the field of climate technology, compared to 416 in London. On the other hand, Germany is represented in the top 10 in Europe with two cities. For example, 51 climate technology start-ups were created in Munich.
The study also sees an indication of a supported ecosystem in the early stages of start-ups in the number of completed rounds. Here, Berlin ranks third worldwide, behind the Bay Area and London - but in terms of numbers, the differences are large. In 2020, there were 92 rounds around San Francisco, 65 in London and 17 in Berlin. Germany has not yet produced any unicorns in this area, and the study does not expect any in the near future. Here too, Stockholm and London are the winners in Europe. Both have six companies in the field of climate technology that could become unicorns.
The largest rounds in Europe were completed by Northvolt from Sweden, Blackmarket from France, Vinted from Lithuania and a German start-up in the field of climate technology: Volocopter raised 241 million US dollars in its Series D round this year. The example in Germany also shows the development of the individual sectors: The energy and transportation sector accounts for 80 percent of sustainable investments. The food sector has seen the strongest growth.
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