On Wednesday, October 28, StartGreen Capital celebrated its 20th anniversary at the Royal Tropical Institute (KIT) in Amsterdam. Together with investors, entrepreneurs, project developers, partners, and (former) colleagues, we looked back on twenty years of impact investing. An afternoon filled with personal stories, insights, and encounters, where the power of collaboration took center stage.
From an attic room in Huizen to twenty years of impact investing
Coenraad de Vries opened the afternoon with a look back at the origins of StartGreen. What began twenty years ago in an attic room in Huizen has grown into a specialized impact fund manager that makes capital available for companies and projects through venture capital and project financing.
Under the guidance of comedian and philosopher Tim Fransen, founders Laura Rooseboom and Coenraad de Vries then discussed the past twenty years.
The original motivation for founding StartGreen clearly emerged: the conviction that entrepreneurship and capital can play an important role in solving societal challenges.
They also reflected on defining moments in StartGreen’s development. A significant step was taking over the management of Energiefonds Overijssel from ASN, which considerably expanded StartGreen’s expertise in loans and project financing.
That development also brought valuable insights. Laura and Coenraad emphasized the importance of focus and the complementarity of venture capital and project financing. Both forms of financing play an important role in developing and scaling solutions for societal challenges.
In twenty years, StartGreen has now amassed 738 million AUM, through over 500 loans and investments. Since the start of impact reporting in 2018, more than 7 million tons of CO₂ reduction has been reported.
New financing questions and opportunities
The retrospective formed the starting point for a conversation about the financing issues of today and tomorrow. StartGreen remains fully committed to the further growth of its activities in venture capital and project financing.
The energy transition is entering a new phase. While attention was long focused primarily on the generation of renewable energy with solar and wind, an energy system is now emerging in which generation, storage, and smart energy management are increasingly closely linked. This brings new investment opportunities and financing challenges.
There is also still much work to be done in the field of diversity and inclusion. Laura reflected on the inequality between men and women, which is visible in areas such as product development and healthcare. Many solutions are historically based on male perspectives, meaning the needs of women are insufficiently considered. Through Borski Fund, StartGreen remains committed to improving access to capital for female entrepreneurship and seizing investment opportunities in areas such as Women’s Health.
The ambitions for the coming years took concrete shape during the anniversary with the introduction of two new funds. Erhan Yildiz and Stijn Welage explained the StartGreen Climate Impact Equity Fund. Claire Tange and Bertrand Van Leersum presented Borski Fund 2.
The power of collaboration
The afternoon was concluded by Tim Fransen, who reflected on entrepreneurship and societal change with humor and philosophical sharpness.
His story centered on the cultural shift toward moral cynicism: the risk that people, faced with the complexity of societal challenges, lose confidence that their actions can make a difference.
Fransen offered a different perspective. The willingness to continue doing good, even when results are uncertain, can be a source of energy and progress. He emphasized the importance of collaboration as one of the most important human strengths.
That message aligned with StartGreen’s mission and vision for the future: accelerating transitions that contribute to a sustainable, resilient, and fair society.
Fransen concluded with the words: “This sounds like a project we need.”
Moving forward with confidence
Twenty years of StartGreen was a moment to reflect on what we have achieved together. But above all, it was a moment to look ahead.
Today’s financing challenges are different from those of twenty years ago. New technologies, changing markets, and societal developments require appropriate financing and collaboration between entrepreneurs, project developers, investors, and public parties.
The experience and relationships that StartGreen has built over twenty years form a valuable foundation for continuing to work on these tasks.
𝗗𝗮𝗻𝗸 𝗮𝗮𝗻 𝗶𝗲𝗱𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝗱𝗶𝗲 𝗵𝗶𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗮𝗻 𝗵𝗲𝗲𝗳𝘁 𝗯𝗶𝗷𝗴𝗲𝗱𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗻
We thank all investors and partners for their trust and commitment, the entrepreneurs and project developers who set transitions in motion, and all current and former StartGreen employees who have contributed to this.
We also thank Tim Fransen for his inspiring contribution, the Royal Tropical Institute for their hospitality, and everyone who came to celebrate our anniversary with us.
We look back on this afternoon with great pleasure and look forward to the next 20 years with great confidence.
