Cities are where most of the world’s prosperity happens, and, yes, where most of our emissions and waste come from too. That’s exactly why 2150 launched: to prove that urban growth can be sustainable, without slowing down progress.
Today, the VC firm has finalised its second fund at €210 million, taking total assets under management to €500 million. The new close broadens the firm’s investor base across Europe, Asia, and North America.
Turning urbanisation from a problem to a solution
2150 was founded in 2021 by Jacob Bro, Christian Jolck, Rahul Parekh, and Christian Hernandez to flip the script on urbanisation, turning it from a global problem into a real solution.
Christian Jolck, 2150 co-founder and partner, says, “Four years after unveiling 2150, we have raised €500m, invested in 27 companies and mitigated over a megatonne of CO2e per year. Our exceptional founders are building companies of scale, with aggregate revenue exceeding $1 billion and over 4,500 employees.”
Jolck adds, “For Fund II, we have continued to partner with leading institutional investors across Europe, North America, and Asia, who have invested in this category for multiple cycles. This combination gives us strong conviction in the 2150s ’ ability to deliver attractive long-term returns and a long-standing investment platform.”
So, what does 2150 actually back? Startups shaking up the built environment, energy, and industrial supply chains. The new fund is already fueling companies like AtmosZero (electrifying industrial heat), GetMobil (refurbished electronics), Metycle (circular metal trading), and Mission Zero Technologies (direct air capture). And there are three more deals in the pipeline, yet deals remain unannounced.
Hernandez tells TFN. “Our investing thesis remains the same as before. We’re still mainly targeting companies at the Series A stage, while also pursuing deals at seed and later stages. We’re still investing across the Atlantic, finding technologies we can bring into Europe. Conversely, we scale European companies that we can take into the US. We uncover specific problems where we find solutions in other markets, which is why we have backed startups in Brazil, Turkey and Singapore, for example. “
What about diversity?
When we asked about diversity, Hernandez shares, “We value and promote diversity and inclusion within our team and in our portfolio. Our public diversity policy highlights our work with Diversity VC and the metrics we track across our portfolio, including diversity of management teams and the inclusion of D&I during our due diligence process. We also work with our founders post-investment to track and report their efforts at a Board level. “
What’s next?
With Fund II wrapped, 2150 is gearing up to scale across Europe and push further into North America and Asia. Hernandez concludes, “We continue to champion founders contributing to the health of the planet by scaling efficient and cost-competitive solutions without the need for regulatory obligations or government grants. This has meant that we’ve been protected against changing climate policies in the U.S and elsewhere.”
