Persistent raises $10m to grow its climate venture building arm
Persistent Energy Capital LLC has raised $10 million in equity in its series C round. The raise, which was achieved with the support of two lead institutional investors, Kyuden International Corporation and FSD Africa Investments, will enable Persistent to continue to grow its successful climate venture building business in Africa.
The equity raise took the form of series C preferred units of ownership in Persistent, giving series C investors a seat on the board of directors. The largest investor of this series C round, Kyuden International Corporation, is the overseas business arm of the Japanese Kyushu Electric Power Group. Kyuden has energy investment activities and consulting services across the world and shares with Persistent a strong commitment to renewable energy and building sustainable communities. Investing in Persistent represents a strategic move for Kyuden to expand its overseas business with an established partner in Africa, where the demand for clean power and electric mobility is growing dramatically. Persistent will benefit from the expertise, know-how, and network accumulated from domestic and overseas energy businesses of Kyuden around the globe.
This successful fundraise was also achieved thanks to the catalytic patient capital provided by Financial Sector Deepening Africa Investments Ltd. (FSDAi), the investment arm of the UK FCDO specialist development agency FSD Africa. FSDAi’s mission is to build and strengthen financial markets across sub-Saharan Africa. Investing in Persistent’s climate venture building business furthers FSDAi’s objective of driving and supporting innovative models that can address market gaps and remove financing barriers to early-stage entrepreneurs. FSDAi’s capital met a critical milestone for closing the series C round, enabling Persistent to broaden its investment scope, enter new markets and innovate new technologies while attracting further institutional investment in the future.
Tobias Ruckstuhl, managing partner of Persistent says, “Many more companies need to be started and built in order to reach the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) within the next 10 years. Kyuden and FSDAi are committed to our entrepreneurial climate venture building model. By leveraging these powerful partnerships, we will be able to accelerate our most pioneering venture building investments, driving the transition to clean energy, promoting e-mobility and finding innovative business models and technological developments across the continent.”
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