BlackRock-Temasek closes at US$1.4 bn

Two of the world's biggest investors have joined forces to fund private companies making waves in decarbonisation and the net zero economy.

BlackRock and Temasek reached a final close of US$1.4 billion for their late-stage venture capital and growth private equity investment fund.

The Decarbonization Partners Fund I, a Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR) Article 9 fund, had a fundraising target of US$1 billion.

Article 9 funds are products which target sustainable investments, "where a financial product has sustainable investment as its objective and an index has been designated as a reference benchmark".

Allstate, BBVA, KIRKBI, Mizuho Bank Ltd, MUFG Bank Ltd, TotalEnergies, and others, are the first investors in the firm.

More than 30 institutional investors were drawn to the fund, including public and private pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, insurance, corporates and family offices across the US, Europe and APAC.

Meghan Sharp, global head of Decarbonization Partners said: "Decarbonization Partners was deliberately set up as a purpose-built entity that can uniquely convene and collaborate with key players in the climate ecosystem: innovative companies, large corporates, co-investors, clients and later-stage capital providers,"

Sharp said the fund has been under development over the past two years.

Larry Fink, BlackRock chair and CEO commented: "There is enormous demand for energy infrastructure as many countries seek to transition to lower-carbon sources of power while also achieving energy security. Decarbonization Partners brings together the best of Temasek and BlackRock to identify generational investment opportunities in climate technology that we believe will help to bring down the green premium, enable a more affordable energy transition, and generate long-term financial returns for our clients."