Climate InsurTech startup Artio has raised £550,000 to pioneer insurance solutions for early-stage carbon removal projects through its proprietary risk modelling platform.
With organisations worldwide racing to achieve net-zero targets and address historical emissions, there’s an urgent need to scale high-quality carbon removal projects. However, early-stage projects struggle to secure investment due to delivery risks.
Artio says its insurance products enable investors to confidently back early-stage carbon removal projects by providing risk mitigation from day one. This increased security aims to accelerate market growth and boost the supply of high-integrity carbon credits, critical for helping corporations and governments meet their 2030 climate commitments.
Bilal Hussain, CEO, has extensive experience assessing carbon projects from his time at Sylvera and Maya Climate.
Ibrahim Sarwar, COO, has a robust background in early-stage project finance modelling and risk management from his time at Deloitte.
“I’ve directly seen carbon project investments fall through due to the risk of under-delivery. We need datasets built for early-stage risk modelling, and that’s what we are building to power our insurance products,” said Hussain.
The funding will accelerate Artio’s product development and key hires. The company plans to launch its first insurance products for carbon removal projects in early 2025. This product is being developed with experienced insurance partners as part of Lloyd’s Lab.
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The round was led by Lifetime Ventures, leveraging their deep climate tech expertise, alongside SFC Capital, one of the UK’s most active pre-seed investors.
“We believe that solving climate challenges requires risk transfers to unlock massive capital flows towards climate solutions, and our investment in Artio aligns with our commitment to backing tech-driven solutions,” said Koshu Kunii, general partner at Lifetime Ventures.
“Artio’s scalable approach to insuring carbon credits brings transparency and accountability to a vital carbon financial market, enabling a more effective path to decarbonisation.”