Less than two years ago, actor, producer and investor Robert Downey Jr. launched a sustainability-focused project, FootPrint Coalition, on Amazon’s re: MARS. When announced at the conference, it was about a statistics website and a subscription.
Times have changed, and the organization now has five investee companies and non-profit projects, launching a rolling venture fund called Footprint Coalition Ventures at the Digital Davos event of the International Economic Forum.
With this new rolling fund managed by AngelList, Downey Jr.’s project sits at the intersection of two major ideas that will transform the global economy. This is a $ 10 trillion opportunity to democratize the use of funds and investment methods, and to decarbonize the world’s industries.
This is a new secret for the project, which seeks to combat the global climate crisis with a combination of narrative, investment and non-profit activities.
Rolling funds and financial revolution
Right now, the financial world is undergoing a revolution. Reddit users are new crowdfunding enthusiasts trying to retaliate for fraudulent investment in short sellers and big institutional investors Blockbuster, Nokia, GameStop, AMC and more. The situation on Wall Street is clearly changing, with Ding and Rolling Funds allowing general investors to lend to early-stage companies.
And while open-market gambling is creating some new millionaires, opening up investment opportunities in interesting startups is in stark contrast to distrust of day trading gambling.
Both can end up negative for investors, but rolling funds and crowdfunding have real opportunities to create something, not just rebelling against power.
Unlike traditional venture funds, rolling funds are called “rolling” because they promise new funds quarterly and invest sequentially. Investors invest quarterly with a promise of at least one year. Downey Jr.’s fund promises $ 5,000 a quarter and can accommodate up to 2,000 qualified investors (including a few accredited investors), a person familiar with the organization’s plans. Is talking.
“I like the idea of opening the fund to real people, not big institutional investors, because it’s more like a Slamdance Film Festival than a Sundance Film Festival.”
A guide to getting to know FootPrint Coalition Ventures
FootPrint Coalition Ventures is divided into early stage and late stage investments, investing six times a year in early stage companies and four times in late stage companies.
Downey Jr. is backed by investors such as Jonathan Schulhof, who previously founded LOOM Media to build a smart urban infrastructure for advertising and Motivate Internationl. He ran bicycle sharing services in cities across the United States and was a managing partner at Global Technology Investments. Others include Downey Jr.’s media production company Team Downey and Steve Levin, co-founder of Downey Ventures, which invests in media technology companies.
There are already four companies in the company’s portfolio that have invested in their own assets, including founders. All of these investments are less than $ 1 million, but the promised amount will increase as the funds are collected. Footprint Coalition also has the right to invest in Prorata, which can increase the investment amount in the future. In addition, the investment made so far is on a scale that anticipates the possibility of additional investment at a higher valuation in the future.
Venture fund in the organization
The organization Downey Jr. wants to create is more than just an investment sector. He and his co-founders consider it a small part of a wide range of platforms that leverage Downey Jr.’s huge support for investment and the storytelling they have cultivated over the decades they spent in the film business. ing.
The team will also be joined by Rachel Kropa, a former head of the CAA Foundation, who will lead scientific and philanthropic activities and serve as the fund’s impact advisor and scientific and research community window. has been written.
“The idea we created to connect content to individuals is very powerful,” Cropa said. “This problem is really robust and involves the world. It’s important that the fish you eat are fed sustainably.”
Klopa cites an article published by FootPrint Coalition in connection with sustainable aquaculture. The article states that FootPrint Coalition has recently invested in Ÿnsect, a company that manufactures cricket protein for use in feed and human food.
“Our cellular agriculture content is a classic example of content that can be created in the process of digging deeper into a particular industry. We haven’t invested in this area yet, but there’s an interesting story to tell. I believe, “said a person working for the company.
The media is an add-on that revitalizes the group’s audience, not something that costs money or is considered part of the investment value. “We’ve put Robert (Downey Jr.)’s voice on video clips, created animated edits, and posted them all on social media. We’re free to work with companies and spend money. We don’t demand any returns, “said the person.
Strange science and sustainability
Ÿnsect is an example of a FootPrint Coalition-backed company doing something a little different from what most of Downey Jr.’s supporters envision, such as Cloud Paper for making bamboo-derived toilet paper and sustainability. Investing in Aspiration, a gender-focused financial services company, has clear ties to consumers.
This balance is one of Schulhoff’s goals that the company’s purpose is not just environmental and sustainable returns, but concrete benefits.
“Our goal is to be meaningful and influential, so I will be a pure capitalist. The question of whether it is a good opportunity is the rate of return, scale, risk characteristics, people involved, and the roots. Depends on whether you think you can provide value to your investors, “Shurhof said. “We are looking for a return.”
The chances of a return are enormous. As they say, the ESG sector (funds specializing in environmental, social and political issues) continues to grow rapidly. Partly due to the move towards “stakeholder capitalism,” investment funds as a whole have exceeded $ 250 billion and the value of sustainable assets has doubled in the last three years.
“There are two strong trends that support the environment. One is that engaging content and media distribution have created an enthusiastic community of 100 million Robert supporters and made great investments with them. Making it available, and the fact that the Turnkey Technology Platform has enabled us to manage individual investors in a variety of areas, “Shurhof said in a statement. “Venture funds traditionally have high minimum amounts, excluding high net worth individuals, donations and fund groups. By setting a much lower minimum amount and shorter investment periods, we invest in the same group of companies. We are now open to a much larger group. When investors ignite more enthusiastic supporters, we can begin positive feedback and make environmental technology the ultimate beneficiary. Wants. ”
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