Singapore-based investment firm Circulate Capital has closed the first phase of its new fund that will bring disruptive plastic recycling technologies from Europe and US to Asia.
It has raised $14 million (£10 million) in this first phase of the Circulate Capital Disrupt (CCD) fund, that is a companion to the $106 million (£76 million) Circulate Capital Ocean Fund that was launched in 2019.
CCD will invest in select, high growth investment opportunities across the waste management and recycling value chain in South and South East Asia that prevent plastic pollution and advance the circular economy.
It said that CCD’s pipeline comprises innovative companies that are disrupting supply chains, with many of these based in Europe and US wanting to expand their proven technologies into Asia.
Circulate Capital founder and chief executive Rob Kaplan said: “It’s time for Circulate Capital to strengthen our strategy to fight ocean plastic by also investing upstream to capture a range of exciting investment opportunities at the nexus of climate-tech and plastics that can help us take recycling into the next century.
“The new fund leverages our partnerships with leading corporations and the existing Asia-based portfolio to invest and scale disruptive technologies that have the potential to deliver outsized financial and impact returns.
“Applying climate-tech innovations to the plastics crisis may be the key to stemming the tide, and presents climate-focused investors with the potential for meaningful financial and impact outcomes.”
