Verdane awarded B Corp accreditation, underscoring the commitment to sustainability

B Corporations (B Corps) are businesses that demonstrate the highest standards of social and environmental performance, transparency, and accountability. Certification is completed by the non-profit B Lab, which follows a rigorous assessment and verification process that ensures accredited businesses exhibit best-in-class social and environmental business practices. Businesses need to score 80 or above to be accredited. Verdane is one of a small number of private equity investors in Europe to obtain this accreditation.

Verdane has been investing in businesses that are working towards a sustainable world since 2006. In 2022, Verdane announced the €300m Idun I fund, Europe’s largest growth impact fund at its launch. The fund is classified as ‘Article 9’ under the EU’s Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation. Idun I investments report on bespoke sustainability KPIs, and both the fund’s carried interest and credit facility are linked to goal attainment. Verdane has made ten investments through Idun I, including Re-Match, the global leader in artificial turf recycling; Scanbio, Europe’s leading aquaculture waste management provider; and Cleanwatts, a climate tech leader providing energy management software solutions.

In 2022, Verdane was the first private equity firm globally to commit to neutralising all future residual carbon emissions with engineered, permanent carbon removals. That same year Verdane ranked in the top ten purchasers of carbon offsets globally. Since then, Verdane has launched an initiative called Njord Carbon alongside a globally leading forest industry group, Södra, and international energy company Equinor, with the aim of sustainably removing and permanently storing biogenic carbon emissions and scaling the carbon removals value chain. Verdane has furthered its commitment by publicly announcing its 2030 sustainability targets at a firm level and portfolio level. With the help of Elevate, its in-house team of operational experts, Verdane supports its portfolio companies to make sustainability a growth driver.

Bjarne Kveim Lie, Managing Partner at Verdane commented: “Our commitment to sustainability is part of the core fabric of Verdane and we are proud of this significant milestone. Becoming a member of the B Corp community has long been an aspiration of ours, and we are thrilled to have their support. We want the B Corp certification to serve as a strong statement of intent, and as a strengthening of our commitment to building sustainable growth businesses.”