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CEO and co-founder of Refurbed
Kilian Kaminski graduated in communication and media studies in 2013 at Fresenius University in Cologne, Germany. Kaminski and Peter Windischhofer met during a master’s program at Hult International Business School. The two post-grads also worked in Shanghai in 2014.Kaminski held various business and marketing internship roles at Fiege Far East Holding and pottery-maker ProGreen in Shanghai, Hansa shipping GmbH and Hamburg Sparkasse bank in Germany and also at a music agency in Australia.In December 2014, he joined Amazon Services as an accounts manager in Munich. He also worked as Amazon’s program lead for certified refurbished DE marketplace for over two years.He left in 2017 and co-founded Refurbed with Windischhofer in Austria. In 2019, the CEO of Vienna-based refurbished electronics marketplace became an expert member of the Consumer Insight Action Panel, an EU initiative designed to support the transition to the circular economy.
Kilian Kaminski graduated in communication and media studies in 2013 at Fresenius University in Cologne, Germany. Kaminski and Peter Windischhofer met during a master’s program at Hult International Business School. The two post-grads also worked in Shanghai in 2014.Kaminski held various business and marketing internship roles at Fiege Far East Holding and pottery-maker ProGreen in Shanghai, Hansa shipping GmbH and Hamburg Sparkasse bank in Germany and also at a music agency in Australia.In December 2014, he joined Amazon Services as an accounts manager in Munich. He also worked as Amazon’s program lead for certified refurbished DE marketplace for over two years.He left in 2017 and co-founded Refurbed with Windischhofer in Austria. In 2019, the CEO of Vienna-based refurbished electronics marketplace became an expert member of the Consumer Insight Action Panel, an EU initiative designed to support the transition to the circular economy.
Kaszek Ventures is an Argentinian VC co-founded in 2011 by Hernan Kazah and Nicolas Szekasy, both hailing from Latin America’s e-commerce success story MercadoLibre. Starting with $95m, the VC made its first investment in Brazilian fintech, Nubank. The VC now has over 159 investments and has managed 21 exits. It mainly focuses on B2C solutions, mobile, healthcare technology, retail and media.The most recent Kaszek investment is in Latin America’s leading crypto platform Bitso, co-leading Bitso’s $62m Series B round with QED Investors. Managing partner Szekasy has also joined Bitso’s board. Existing shareholders Coinbase Ventures and Pantera Capital joined the Bitso round.In 2019, Kaszek raised two new funds securing a total of $600m to invest in later-growth stage companies to tap into Latin America’s rapidly maturing tech ecosystems. The rollout of 4G has also helped to speed up the adoption of new technologies across the region, according to Kazah.
Kaszek Ventures is an Argentinian VC co-founded in 2011 by Hernan Kazah and Nicolas Szekasy, both hailing from Latin America’s e-commerce success story MercadoLibre. Starting with $95m, the VC made its first investment in Brazilian fintech, Nubank. The VC now has over 159 investments and has managed 21 exits. It mainly focuses on B2C solutions, mobile, healthcare technology, retail and media.The most recent Kaszek investment is in Latin America’s leading crypto platform Bitso, co-leading Bitso’s $62m Series B round with QED Investors. Managing partner Szekasy has also joined Bitso’s board. Existing shareholders Coinbase Ventures and Pantera Capital joined the Bitso round.In 2019, Kaszek raised two new funds securing a total of $600m to invest in later-growth stage companies to tap into Latin America’s rapidly maturing tech ecosystems. The rollout of 4G has also helped to speed up the adoption of new technologies across the region, according to Kazah.
Beyond Investing is a Geneva-based firm investing in early-stage venture capital and equity growth startups mainly in European developed markets. With average investments of €200,000, the firm’s core investment strategy focuses on sustainability with an investment period lasting 5–10 years.The impact investor targets innovative startups involved in vegan, cruelty-free and plant-based alternatives; biotechnologies, foodtech, new materials, clothing and lifestyle sectors. Successful portfolio foodtechs include Mosa Meat, BlueNalu and Shiok Meats.With a team of vegan finance professionals in the US and Europe, Beyond Investing listed the first US Vegan Climate ETF (VEGN) on the New York Stock Exchange in September 2019. The ETF tracks Beyond Investing’s US Vegan Climate Index which covers an index of 495 of the largest-capitalization companies in the US stock market. The ethical investment option aims to exclude stocks in companies with activities that are not aligned with its vegan-themed, cruelty-free and fossil-fuel-free investing ethos.
Beyond Investing is a Geneva-based firm investing in early-stage venture capital and equity growth startups mainly in European developed markets. With average investments of €200,000, the firm’s core investment strategy focuses on sustainability with an investment period lasting 5–10 years.The impact investor targets innovative startups involved in vegan, cruelty-free and plant-based alternatives; biotechnologies, foodtech, new materials, clothing and lifestyle sectors. Successful portfolio foodtechs include Mosa Meat, BlueNalu and Shiok Meats.With a team of vegan finance professionals in the US and Europe, Beyond Investing listed the first US Vegan Climate ETF (VEGN) on the New York Stock Exchange in September 2019. The ETF tracks Beyond Investing’s US Vegan Climate Index which covers an index of 495 of the largest-capitalization companies in the US stock market. The ethical investment option aims to exclude stocks in companies with activities that are not aligned with its vegan-themed, cruelty-free and fossil-fuel-free investing ethos.
Founded in London in 1998, Kreos Capital is a pioneer growth debt provider. Kreos has completed over 630 deals worth over €3bn in pan-European countries and Israel. The Kreos Capital Group of companies and various funds are regulated by the Jersey Financial Services Commission.Kreos currently has 102 companies in its portfolio and has managed over 200 exits. Investee Riskified, an Israeli e-commerce fraud protection company, was listed on the NYSE at a $3.3bn valuation in August 2021. Kreos also joined recent investments in 2021 including the $54m Series B round of Austrian refurbished electronics goods marketplace Refurbed and the €9.5m round of Berlin-based HRtech expertlead.
Founded in London in 1998, Kreos Capital is a pioneer growth debt provider. Kreos has completed over 630 deals worth over €3bn in pan-European countries and Israel. The Kreos Capital Group of companies and various funds are regulated by the Jersey Financial Services Commission.Kreos currently has 102 companies in its portfolio and has managed over 200 exits. Investee Riskified, an Israeli e-commerce fraud protection company, was listed on the NYSE at a $3.3bn valuation in August 2021. Kreos also joined recent investments in 2021 including the $54m Series B round of Austrian refurbished electronics goods marketplace Refurbed and the €9.5m round of Berlin-based HRtech expertlead.
CEO and founder of Petit Pli
Ryan Mario Yasin is an engineer, designer and sustainable fashion entrepreneur based in London. Originally from Reykjavik, Iceland, Yasin graduated in aeronautical engineering at Imperial College London and has a master’s in global innovation design from the Royal College of Art. As a 23-year-old design student, Yasin founded materials technology startup Petit Pli, and developed the design for the company’s first product, a pleated garment that could expand up to seven sizes to last children through their first few years of life. Petit Pli now makes expandable pleated clothes for children and adults, using a fabric derived from recycled plastic and a structure inspired by origami, architecture and space satellites. Petit Pli products have won a number of prestigious awards, such as the UK James Dyson Award, Time Magazine’s best invention of 2020 and the Red Dot Product Design Award.Yasin has a strong interest in photography and in the interplay between art and engineering. In 2020, Yasin was included by Forbes in its 30 Under 30 list for Europe.
Ryan Mario Yasin is an engineer, designer and sustainable fashion entrepreneur based in London. Originally from Reykjavik, Iceland, Yasin graduated in aeronautical engineering at Imperial College London and has a master’s in global innovation design from the Royal College of Art. As a 23-year-old design student, Yasin founded materials technology startup Petit Pli, and developed the design for the company’s first product, a pleated garment that could expand up to seven sizes to last children through their first few years of life. Petit Pli now makes expandable pleated clothes for children and adults, using a fabric derived from recycled plastic and a structure inspired by origami, architecture and space satellites. Petit Pli products have won a number of prestigious awards, such as the UK James Dyson Award, Time Magazine’s best invention of 2020 and the Red Dot Product Design Award.Yasin has a strong interest in photography and in the interplay between art and engineering. In 2020, Yasin was included by Forbes in its 30 Under 30 list for Europe.
Founded by Finnish serial entrepreneur and angel investor Riku Asikainen, Helsinki-based Evli Growth Partners invest across market segments, with typical initial stakes of €3m–5m at Series A and B funding stages. The VC is currently building up a total fund of €200m to focus on investments in later-stage growth companies Europe. The first fund, EGP Fund I Ky, was launched in December 2018 and closed at €60m in November 2019. New funds will be set up every two years until 2028.EGP currently has seven companies in its portfolio. In 2021, Evli was co-lead investor for the $54m Series B round of Austrian refurbished electronics goods marketplace Refurbed in August, and investor lead in the €22m Series C round of Polish customized furniture design platform Tylko in March.
Founded by Finnish serial entrepreneur and angel investor Riku Asikainen, Helsinki-based Evli Growth Partners invest across market segments, with typical initial stakes of €3m–5m at Series A and B funding stages. The VC is currently building up a total fund of €200m to focus on investments in later-stage growth companies Europe. The first fund, EGP Fund I Ky, was launched in December 2018 and closed at €60m in November 2019. New funds will be set up every two years until 2028.EGP currently has seven companies in its portfolio. In 2021, Evli was co-lead investor for the $54m Series B round of Austrian refurbished electronics goods marketplace Refurbed in August, and investor lead in the €22m Series C round of Polish customized furniture design platform Tylko in March.
VNV Global was originally founded as Vostok Nafta in 1996, with its first investment in Russia. The investment vehicle initially focused on investments in agriculture and natural resources, but began to diversify into early consumer internet companies like Avito and Tinkoff Bank. Shares were listed on NASDAQ OMX and the VC pivoted to high-growth tech investments in 2007. In 2015, the name was changed to Vostok New Ventures and shortened to VNV Global in 2020 to reflect its international strategy to expand outside Europe.The mid-cap NASDAQ Stockholm exchange-listed VNV mainly invests in mobility, medtech and marketplaces. It currently has 31 startups in its portfolio and six exits managed to date. Recent investments led by VNV include the $43m Series B funding of London-based food waste app OLIO in September 2021 and the $1.6m seed round of Vietnamese dating app Fika in October 2021.
VNV Global was originally founded as Vostok Nafta in 1996, with its first investment in Russia. The investment vehicle initially focused on investments in agriculture and natural resources, but began to diversify into early consumer internet companies like Avito and Tinkoff Bank. Shares were listed on NASDAQ OMX and the VC pivoted to high-growth tech investments in 2007. In 2015, the name was changed to Vostok New Ventures and shortened to VNV Global in 2020 to reflect its international strategy to expand outside Europe.The mid-cap NASDAQ Stockholm exchange-listed VNV mainly invests in mobility, medtech and marketplaces. It currently has 31 startups in its portfolio and six exits managed to date. Recent investments led by VNV include the $43m Series B funding of London-based food waste app OLIO in September 2021 and the $1.6m seed round of Vietnamese dating app Fika in October 2021.
Commercial Director and co-founder of Digitanimal by SensoWave
An industrial engineer by training, Rubén Blanco Carrera comes from a family of ranchers in Cabañas, 18 km from Ávila, Spain. Currently he is Commercial Director and co-founder of IoT startup SensoWave, as well as its brand Digitanimal, aimed at remote farming. The business idea of Digitanimal partly came about because of Blanco’s personal experience with his own livestock. Using IoT remote tracking, detecting heat and parturition through the use of sensors , which are analyzed to reflect the behavior of the cattle and notify alert ranchers to the anomalies detected, he was able to save a mother and calf from a difficult delivery. In another incident, the technology helped alert him to the attack of wolves. Blanco holds both a first degree and a master's degree from Madrid's Alfonso X El Sabio University, the former in Technical Engineering in Industrial and Product Design and the latter in Industrial Engineering and Industrial Electronics. He then worked as an industrial engineer at both private company Retailgas and at Alfa Imaging, the startup co-founded by Carlos Callejero, with whom Blanco later co-founded SensoWave.
An industrial engineer by training, Rubén Blanco Carrera comes from a family of ranchers in Cabañas, 18 km from Ávila, Spain. Currently he is Commercial Director and co-founder of IoT startup SensoWave, as well as its brand Digitanimal, aimed at remote farming. The business idea of Digitanimal partly came about because of Blanco’s personal experience with his own livestock. Using IoT remote tracking, detecting heat and parturition through the use of sensors , which are analyzed to reflect the behavior of the cattle and notify alert ranchers to the anomalies detected, he was able to save a mother and calf from a difficult delivery. In another incident, the technology helped alert him to the attack of wolves. Blanco holds both a first degree and a master's degree from Madrid's Alfonso X El Sabio University, the former in Technical Engineering in Industrial and Product Design and the latter in Industrial Engineering and Industrial Electronics. He then worked as an industrial engineer at both private company Retailgas and at Alfa Imaging, the startup co-founded by Carlos Callejero, with whom Blanco later co-founded SensoWave.
Founded in 2013 by Ramanan Raghavendran and John Kim, Amasia is a venture capital investment firm based in San Francisco and Singapore. The VC promotes environmental and sustainable innovations that help to reduce consumption, boost recycling and upcycling. Eco-investments include Finch, Treedots and Joro. Finch provides information about a product’s environmental impact to consumers while TreeDots connects grocery suppliers directly with businesses and households. Joro advises users on actionable steps to reduce their carbon footprints.Amasia primarily invests in startups from seed stage up to Series B, but it has also participated in later-stage investments. The VC also aims to encourage conventional offline businesses to go online and optimize supply chain activities. In October 2020, Amasia participated in a $100m Series E round raised by Dialpad, a remote working communication software firm. In September 2021, the VC took a stake in Indonesian fintech Xendit’s $150m Series C round. Tokopedia also joined the Amasia stable in 2016 when the e-commerce platform became Indonesia’s first tech unicorn after the $147m funding round.Other investments include Super, a social commerce platform that improves FMCG distribution to tier-2 and tier-3 cities in Indonesia, online education firm SkillShare and Rainforest Life that acquires and aggregates direct-to-consumer e-commerce brands.
Founded in 2013 by Ramanan Raghavendran and John Kim, Amasia is a venture capital investment firm based in San Francisco and Singapore. The VC promotes environmental and sustainable innovations that help to reduce consumption, boost recycling and upcycling. Eco-investments include Finch, Treedots and Joro. Finch provides information about a product’s environmental impact to consumers while TreeDots connects grocery suppliers directly with businesses and households. Joro advises users on actionable steps to reduce their carbon footprints.Amasia primarily invests in startups from seed stage up to Series B, but it has also participated in later-stage investments. The VC also aims to encourage conventional offline businesses to go online and optimize supply chain activities. In October 2020, Amasia participated in a $100m Series E round raised by Dialpad, a remote working communication software firm. In September 2021, the VC took a stake in Indonesian fintech Xendit’s $150m Series C round. Tokopedia also joined the Amasia stable in 2016 when the e-commerce platform became Indonesia’s first tech unicorn after the $147m funding round.Other investments include Super, a social commerce platform that improves FMCG distribution to tier-2 and tier-3 cities in Indonesia, online education firm SkillShare and Rainforest Life that acquires and aggregates direct-to-consumer e-commerce brands.
CEO and Co-founder of Plastic Bank
David Katz is the Canadian co-founder, president and CEO of Plastic Bank, a-first-of-a-kind social enterprise startup that monetizes plastic waste collection for some of the world’s poorest communities. Katz was inspired by a university seminar about recycling plastic waste in 2013 and founded Plastic Bank with CTO and brand strategist Shaun Frankson in Vancouver.In 2019, he became a fellow for the Unreasonable Group’s Impact Hub in Vancouver, an organization that supports social and environmental entrepreneurship. In 2011, he also founded Vancouver’s Core Values Institute, a consulting and global thought leadership platform for entrepreneurs.In 2014, he was also president of Vancouver’s chapter of the Entrepreneurs Organization for one year. He was named Global Citizen of the Year in 2014 by the international organization that has a network of over 10,000 business owners in 131 chapters across 40 countries. He also won the 2017 UN Lighthouse award for Planetary Health and Plastic Bank received the Paris COP21 Climate Conference Sustania Community Award in 2015.Katz completed a diploma in Hospitality Administration & Management at the British Columbia Institute of Technology in 1991 and started his own business in 1992 as founder and CEO of Nero Alarms. From 2005 to 2014, Katz worked full-time as the founder and president of Nero Global Tracking, a SaaS platform created to monitor the operations of mobile service vehicles. Nero SaaS is used in many Canadian cities and by the nation’s Defence Ministry. The company is now part of Vecima Networks Inc.
David Katz is the Canadian co-founder, president and CEO of Plastic Bank, a-first-of-a-kind social enterprise startup that monetizes plastic waste collection for some of the world’s poorest communities. Katz was inspired by a university seminar about recycling plastic waste in 2013 and founded Plastic Bank with CTO and brand strategist Shaun Frankson in Vancouver.In 2019, he became a fellow for the Unreasonable Group’s Impact Hub in Vancouver, an organization that supports social and environmental entrepreneurship. In 2011, he also founded Vancouver’s Core Values Institute, a consulting and global thought leadership platform for entrepreneurs.In 2014, he was also president of Vancouver’s chapter of the Entrepreneurs Organization for one year. He was named Global Citizen of the Year in 2014 by the international organization that has a network of over 10,000 business owners in 131 chapters across 40 countries. He also won the 2017 UN Lighthouse award for Planetary Health and Plastic Bank received the Paris COP21 Climate Conference Sustania Community Award in 2015.Katz completed a diploma in Hospitality Administration & Management at the British Columbia Institute of Technology in 1991 and started his own business in 1992 as founder and CEO of Nero Alarms. From 2005 to 2014, Katz worked full-time as the founder and president of Nero Global Tracking, a SaaS platform created to monitor the operations of mobile service vehicles. Nero SaaS is used in many Canadian cities and by the nation’s Defence Ministry. The company is now part of Vecima Networks Inc.
CEO and co-founder of OLIO
Tessa Clarke is the British CEO and co-founder of food-sharing app OLIO that was inspired by her experience of having to throw away perfectly good unused food when she was packing up to move from Switzerland back to the UK in 2014.After graduating with a first-class degree in social and political sciences at the University of Cambridge in UK in 1997, she worked for three years at the Boston Consulting Group as a junior associate. She joined an MBA program at Stanford University Graduate School of Business in 2002 and met Saasha Celestial-One, who was also studying for an MBA at Stanford. In 2015, Clarke and Celestial-One decided to use their savings to create a food-sharing app OLIO after successfully testing the idea as a private WhatsApp group in North London.Before becoming an entrepreneur in 2015, Clarke has held various senior management roles since completing her MBA in 2004. She worked for global business publisher EMAP from 2005 until 2009, when she joined Dyson Inc as e-commerce managing director (MD). In 2013, she left Dyson to become MD of fintech PayLater based in Switzerland run by the Wonga payday loan company. Known then as Tessa Cook, she later became Wonga’s MD for eight months when she was tasked with “cleaning up” the tarnished reputation of the high interest loan company. From 2013 to 2021, she was also chair of the management board of St George’s Palace, a boutique apart-hotel and spa complex in Bansko, Bulgaria.In 2018, she became a fellow at Unreasonable, an organization that supports social and environmental entrepreneurship. For two years until 2021, Clarke was ambassador for the Meaningful Business 100 global event that advocates the achievement of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. She was also a board member for six years at Contentive, a global B2B media and information company. In 2021, her busy schedule now includes becoming a business mentor for not-for-profit Virgin Startup.
Tessa Clarke is the British CEO and co-founder of food-sharing app OLIO that was inspired by her experience of having to throw away perfectly good unused food when she was packing up to move from Switzerland back to the UK in 2014.After graduating with a first-class degree in social and political sciences at the University of Cambridge in UK in 1997, she worked for three years at the Boston Consulting Group as a junior associate. She joined an MBA program at Stanford University Graduate School of Business in 2002 and met Saasha Celestial-One, who was also studying for an MBA at Stanford. In 2015, Clarke and Celestial-One decided to use their savings to create a food-sharing app OLIO after successfully testing the idea as a private WhatsApp group in North London.Before becoming an entrepreneur in 2015, Clarke has held various senior management roles since completing her MBA in 2004. She worked for global business publisher EMAP from 2005 until 2009, when she joined Dyson Inc as e-commerce managing director (MD). In 2013, she left Dyson to become MD of fintech PayLater based in Switzerland run by the Wonga payday loan company. Known then as Tessa Cook, she later became Wonga’s MD for eight months when she was tasked with “cleaning up” the tarnished reputation of the high interest loan company. From 2013 to 2021, she was also chair of the management board of St George’s Palace, a boutique apart-hotel and spa complex in Bansko, Bulgaria.In 2018, she became a fellow at Unreasonable, an organization that supports social and environmental entrepreneurship. For two years until 2021, Clarke was ambassador for the Meaningful Business 100 global event that advocates the achievement of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. She was also a board member for six years at Contentive, a global B2B media and information company. In 2021, her busy schedule now includes becoming a business mentor for not-for-profit Virgin Startup.
Start with the little things: 5 Indonesian social impact startups
From providing student loans to empowering marginalized groups and farmers, these Indonesian startups are revitalizing local communities
Singapore, the place to start and grow a cellular agriculture startup
A country that imports over 90% of its food supply, Singapore has turned to foodtech, including cellular agriculture, to safeguard food security, supported by proactive regulators
Singrow to start selling Singapore-grown strawberries in March, plans $15m Series A this year
Singrow also plans to offer locally grown produce across Southeast Asia, starting with strawberries farmed in energy-efficient greenhouses
Mental health services platform Ibunda wants to keep expanding its reach
Since its founding in 2015, the Indonesian startup Ibunda has provided psychological consultations to over 200,000 clients
iCell: Upcycling nutrients from wastewater
Hong Kong-based iCell Sustainable Nutrition makes single-cell proteins with wastewater from food and beverage factories, generating revenue and purifying the water for safe discharge or reuse
Linptech: Smart home devices powered by movement
The first in China to tap kinetic energy to control smart home devices, Linptech has seen its wireless, battery-free products used in smart homes, and even at the Tokyo Olympics
Biel Glasses: A pioneering solution for low vision sufferers
Biel Glasses offers a life-changing technology for people with low vision, a condition that is seven times more common than blindness
Node: Fighting deforestation with fashionable footwear from agricultural waste
Using patented technology developed with Indonesia’s Ministry of Agriculture, Node turns farm waste and plant materials into biodegradable vegan footwear and shoe components to help fight deforestation.
Voicemod: Voice-tweaking tech that's conquering esports and streamers
Backed by esports and gaming VC BITKRAFT Ventures, Voicemod has become a leading name in voice modification tech for gamers and livestreamers, with 2.5m MAU across 65 countries
Therapixel: Using AI to improve breast cancer detection
Therapixel is raising €15m for commercial expansion of its AI-powered MammoScreen that gives accurate breast cancer screening results within minutes
Sonic Boom: Using sound wave technology to understand shopper behaviour
Sonic Boom's solution, which enables data to be captured from mobile devices without needing an internet connection, is eyeing Indonesia's huge retail market
SmartAHC: Wearables for pigs and smart farm management to boost productivity
SmartAHC has also expanded beyond pig farms to related sectors in the supply chain, including insurance, banking and local government
Onesight: Reducing building construction errors with 3D, AR/VR visualization apps
Shanghai-based Onesight provides a digital alternative to 2D architectural drawings for teams working on construction sites
Because Animals: Pioneering cultured meat for pets
The biotech startup is disrupting the pet food processing industry with cell-based food to minimize environmental “pawprints” and promote animal welfare
CraiditX gives banks and insurers AI tools for assessing consumer credit risk
Used by big lenders like Bank of China and Minsheng Bank, CraiditX's solutions can gauge consumer default risk even if a user has no credit history
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