SlateVC, a Paris-based venture capital firm focused on the climate transition, has raised a €132 million first close for its inaugural growth fund targeting European B2B companies in energy transition and circularity. The firm said the close was backed by a group of institutional and strategic investors including the European Investment Fund (EIF), Bpifrance, the Fonds National de Venture Industriel (FNVI)—managed by Bpifrance and funded by the French government under France 2030—and BNP Paribas.
The new vehicle is designed to back companies where environmental performance is not only an impact metric but a driver of economic advantage. In a statement, SlateVC framed the first close as a sign that investors are increasingly seeking climate strategies capable of scaling into large, competitive businesses. The firm said it aims to invest in European B2B models “where environmental performance drives superior unit economics,” with a focus on energy transition, low-carbon industrial processes, and circularity.
Fundraising in a tougher market
The first close comes amid a broader slowdown in venture fundraising across Europe and a more selective approach to climate investing. Over the past year, many limited partners have shifted attention toward funds and companies that can demonstrate clear pathways to profitability, durable demand, and measurable cost advantages for customers—especially in industrial and infrastructure-adjacent markets where deployment cycles can be long.
SlateVC positioned its strategy in that context, emphasizing scale and competitiveness rather than purely thematic exposure. The firm’s thesis centers on technologies that reduce costs, improve productivity, and increase resilience for industrial customers—benefits that can help climate solutions win procurement decisions even during periods of tighter budgets.
A crowded but active European climate fund landscape
The raise also lands during continued capital formation for climate and transition-focused strategies across Europe in 2025 and early 2026. Recent announcements include Copenhagen-based Footprint Fund and Munich’s Ananda Impact Ventures, both reporting first closes for vehicles with climate and DeepTech exposure. At the larger end, London-based 2150 and Barcelona’s SC Net Zero Ventures have disclosed growth-stage funds aimed at industrial decarbonisation and urban systems.
In the Netherlands and the UK, firms such as Rubio Impact Ventures, CapitalT, and the Clean Growth Fund have also reported new capital commitments. Taken together with SlateVC’s first close, the set of disclosed raises suggests roughly €900 million to €1 billion in climate- and transition-focused venture capital commitments over the period, underscoring sustained institutional interest in scalable business models that link environmental performance to financial returns.
Strategy: growth-stage backing for B2B climate deployment
Founded in 2023, SlateVC is an independent, pan-European investment firm regulated by France’s financial markets authority, the AMF. The fund will target 15 to 20 European B2B companies that have already demonstrated commercial momentum and are ready to expand internationally.
The firm said it will invest across hardware, software, and AI-enabled solutions in four main areas:
- Energy transition
- Low-carbon industrial processes and materials
- Circularity and the resource economy
- Climate resilience
By concentrating on companies closer to market deployment, SlateVC is aiming to fill a common gap in European climate innovation: the need for growth capital that can finance scaling, industrialization, and cross-border expansion once early technical risk has been reduced.
Leadership team and track record
SlateVC is led by four partners whose backgrounds span entrepreneurship, venture capital, and industrial strategy. The firm says the team has completed more than 150 venture investments collectively.
Founding partners
- Clément Buyse, co-founder of PeopleDoc (acquired by UKG) and former Vice-President of France Digitale
- Chloé Giard, former investor at IdInvest and Eurazeo
- Sébastien Léger, former Partner at McKinsey, where he led the Energy and Climate practices
- Renaud Visage, co-founder of Eventbrite (NYSE: EB) and former Venture Partner at Index Ventures and Point Nine Capital
Early investments signal focus on materials and circularity software
SlateVC said it has already completed two cornerstone investments in 2025 that reflect its approach to combining impact with industrial economics. The fund co-led the Series B round of Fairmat, a French company developing recycled carbon-fiber composite materials for use in construction, automotive, and sports equipment. It also led the Series B for Resourcify, a German company offering an AI-powered SaaS platform designed to help global corporations optimize circularity programs across geographies.
With its first close secured, SlateVC is expected to continue building out its portfolio of growth-stage European climate companies—particularly those positioned to expand beyond national markets and compete globally in industrial decarbonisation and resource efficiency.
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