FinLab AG

Spark Change, a FinTech developer of green financial products, raises $4.5m led by Barclays

DGAP-Media / 11.11.2020 / 10:00 London/Frankfurt, November 11, 2020 - Spark Change, the technology platform that simplifies investing in green financial products, today announced the close of a $4.5m (£3.5m) funding round led by Barclays. FinLab EOS VC Fund (a partnership with Block.one and FinLab AG) and Solactive AG also participated in the round. Spark Change's technology creates access to a new class of green financial products that target significant environmental impact at scale without compromising returns. The company serves a global audience of financial institutions and their customers who are seeking new ways to meet their financial objectives in a manner consistent with the world's climate change goals.

"By making a seed investment in a FinTech business like Spark Change, Barclays is helping the company further develop its proposition at the exciting intersection of tech innovation and green finance," said Ryan Hayward, Principal Investments at Barclays.

"Spark Change lets institutions and companies easily gain access to and develop their own innovative ESG investment products to offer their customers. That's a compelling proposition."

Spark Change's platform provides investors with direct exposure to the value of physical carbon emission allowances. The firm, with offices in London, Seattle and Boston, said it is seeing increased demand from institutional portfolio managers looking to capture returns, hedge their carbon price exposure or meet ESG benchmarks.

"Spark Change's technology and products extend the boundaries of green investment products - a value proposition that aligns with Solactive's disruptive mission," said Steffen Scheuble, Chief Executive of Solactive.

"We look forward to supporting this journey and providing our clients with these new tools for innovative ESG solutions."

Stefan Schuetze, Managing Director of FinLab EOS VC Fund, added: "As a supporter of the EOSIO ecosystem with our fund and investments, we are excited to invest in Spark Change, which leverages distributed ledger technology to enable the next generation of financial products creating significant environmental impact."