General Atlantic’s Climate Fund BeyondNetZero Acquires Majority Stake in Real Asset ESG Data Provider GRESB
Real estate and infrastructure-focused ESG data provider GRESB announced today a majority stake investment by BeyondNetZero, the climate-focused fund of growth equity investor General Atlantic.
Founded in 2009, Amsterdam-based GRESB provides standardized and validated ESG data for real estate and infrastructure investments globally. The company validates, scores and independently benchmarks ESG data to provide business intelligence, engagement tools, and regulatory reporting solutions for financial sector participants including investors and asset managers. GRESB publishes annual Real Estate, Real Estate Development, Infrastructure Fund and Infrastructure Asset benchmarks, which last year covered 2,084 real estate portfolios and companies, 687 infrastructure assets and 172 infrastructure funds, representing $8.8 trillion of gross asset value across 75 countries.
Rhea Hamilton, Managing Director at BeyondNetZero, said:
“GRESB has established itself as the industry standard for benchmarking across real assets. With buildings and real estate accounting for 40 percent of global greenhouse emissions, data is key to unlocking the opportunity to deliver net-zero, resilient assets. We believe GRESB’s management of asset-level data and compelling value proposition deepen the Company’s position as an enabler of decarbonization for investors and asset managers.”
Launched in 2021, BeyondNetZero seeks to identify and support high growth businesses that ultimately have the potential to combat climate change at scale. The venture focuses on four central themes, including decarbonization of supply chains, industrial processes and products; energy efficiency solutions; resource conservation, and; emissions management, measurement, storage and removal. General Atlantic announced in 2022 that it had raised $3.5 billion for BeyondNetZero at its final close.
Sebastien Roussotte, Chief Executive Officer, GRESB, said:
“GRESB looks forward to contributing to BeyondNetZero’s vision for climate action powered by technology, innovation, and entrepreneurship. This vision underpins GRESB’s industry-led approach to creating global standards that increase market transparency and accelerate the clean energy transition.”
According to the companies, following the acquisition, General Atlantic will partner with GRESB to support the companies next phase of growth, through strategic expansion and product innovation, aimed at accelerating impact across financial markets.
The majority stake is being acquired from alternative asset firm Summit Partners, which initially invested in GRESB in 2020. Summit Partners will retain a minority stake in GRESB, and the GRESB management team will reinvest into the company as well.
Tom Hussey, Principal at General Atlantic, said:
“GRESB delivers standardization and comparability across the real assets ecosystem, encouraging all participants to measure and improve ESG credentials. We believe that the Company is backed by long-term tailwinds as decarbonization and ESG benchmarking become core metrics for LP portfolios. We intend to leverage General Atlantic’s expertise at the intersection of innovative data, technology, and climate solutions to support GRESB in its continued expansion and product development.”