Fundraising round led by prominent financial and technology investors Societe Generale, North Base Media and The Oak Creek Group
BOULDER, Colorado – Entelligent, a leading independent data and analytics firm, announced the first close of its Series A funding to leverage its predictive climate-risk assessment platform for more widespread use by asset managers.
Entelligent’s proprietary platform utilizes climate-scenario forecasting that allows asset-management, insurance firms, banks and other financial institutions to evaluate long-term climate risks to their investment portfolios at a time of growing interest in stress-testing financial instruments and institutions for global warming.
Participating in this funding round were three investment groups with deep experience in financial services, information and technology, and ESG, all sectors at the intersection of Entelligent’s climate platform:
- Societe Generale. The France-based multinational bank provides advisory, financing and investment solutions that aim to incorporate environmental, social and governance considerations into its product offerings. Societe Generale and Entelligent recently partnered to create climate-aware investment indexes, which are now being offered in insurance products. These “smart indexes” seek to identify companies that are taking positive climate change action, reducing investors’ exposure to climate change risk.
- North Base Media. North Base Media is an investment firm that partners with innovative technologists and entrepreneurs to build new media and technology companies. It was co-founded by Marcus Brauchli, the former editor of The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post, and Saša Vučinič, the founder of the Media Development Investment Fund.
- The Oak Creek Group. Oak Creek has a deep track record of partnering with mission-driven entrepreneurs to create impactful and responsible businesses, with a focus on bringing about positive environmental and social change.
“Financial market leaders are now recognizing the climate crisis,” said Thomas H. Stoner, Jr., CEO of Entelligent. “But that’s not enough. If financial firms want to address the real, long-term risks they and their investors are exposed to — and make today’s Net Zero targets a reality — they have to embrace advanced climate science technologies and data.”
Founded by Stoner, an energy entrepreneur, and Nobel laureate and NASA scientist David Schimel, Entelligent is a pure-play, climate-data analytics firm with a unique approach to measuring climate risk. While most risk methodologies assess the impact a company’s operations are having on the planet, Entelligent measures the impact that climate change transition effects will have on companies.
The predictive nature of Entelligent’s technology makes it particularly useful as banks, asset managers, insurance providers and investors are becoming increasingly aware of not only the financial risks that climate change poses, but also the opportunities to incorporate risk assessment into investment strategies. Companies that act sustainably tend to outperform peers that have not taken action to address climate risks, historical data and research show.
“Investors increasingly understand that climate change and ESG factors are as integral to the investment decision-making process as fundamental analysis,” said Lindsay Ryan, Societe Generale’s ESG Program Manager, Global Markets Americas, who is joining the board of Entelligent. “Entelligent, like SocGen, understands the need to bring advances in climate tech to a financial services community that is more receptive to understanding how the environment impacts the financial choices we make.”
“The most critical form of business information is data,” said Marcus Brauchli, North Base Media’s co-founder and managing partner. “Sophisticated data enable business, investors and society to make better decisions, and there is no more important use case for that than climate change.”
For more information about Entelligent, visit www.entelligent.com.
About Entelligent:
Entelligent is an independent technology company that has developed proprietary and patented (USA) technology to analyze forward-looking climate scenario models to improve risk-adjusted returns for institutional investors. Entelligent was the first company to be granted a patent over the use of climate scenario analysis in climate-risk assessment for security selection and other financial products. Entelligent’s data analytics platform allows the capital markets to make a positive impact on climate change and addresses the lack of clear, tangible metrics to provide a roadmap for effective climate risk investing. It offers a portfolio of solutions including Smart Climate® and E-Score® to deliver patented climate change risk metrics for securities and portfolios.
About Societe Generale:
Societe Generale is one of the leading European financial services groups. Based on a diversified and integrated banking model, the Group combines financial strength and proven expertise in innovation with a strategy of sustainable growth, aiming to be the trusted partner for its clients, committed to the positive transformations of society and the economy. Active in the real economy for over 150 years, with a leading position in Europe and connected to the rest of the world, Societe Generale has over 133,000 members of staff in 61 countries and supports on a daily basis 30 million individual clients, businesses and institutional investors around the world by offering a wide range of advisory services and tailored financial solutions.
About North Base Media:
North Base Media is a specialized firm that has pioneered global digital-media investing over the last decade, helping to build top brands in many of the world’s fastest-growing markets. NBM brings together an experienced team of partners and advisors with decades of experience at the world’s biggest media companies.
About The Oak Creek Group:
Oak Creek Group, LLC is an equity partner to world-class founding teams of nascent and transitioning firms innovating in the asset management industry. Oak Creek invests with a perpetual mandate to be a long-term, mission-aligned partner to companies it works with. A strong track record of successfully implementing and investing in environmental, social, governance (ESG) operating practices is a core hallmark of Oak Creek’s success. In addition, Oak Creek leverages a global network of investors, advisors, partners, and peers to deliver solution sets that founding teams need to build, scale, and sustain their business over the long term.