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Breaking the Mold
Eclipse Injects $1.2 Billion to Propel Physical Industries, S2G Raises $300 Million to Sprout Sustainable Solutions, and a Startup Looks to Dial in on Sustainability.
Adam from VC Brags
April 10, 2023
Welcome Shareholders,
In this daily edition of the Brags Newsletter, we'll cover how Eclipse Ventures Looks to Revamp the Material World with a pair of new funds, S2G looks to fuel a greener revolution with its new fund, and a startup looks to push the circular smartphone economy with its new capital.
So sit back, grab a snack, and enjoy!
Who's Raising?
Palo Alto-based venture firm Eclipse has raised $1.2 billion for two funds focused on supporting startups aiming to revolutionize traditional physical industries.
The new funds bring the venture firm's total assets under management to $4 billion. The first fund, which targets early-stage companies in manufacturing, supply chain, transportation, and electrification sectors, has seen commitments of $720 million, while the remaining capital is expected to be allocated to the Early Growth Fund II, which will support more established businesses.
Eclipse Ventures stated that the upcoming decade in tech would be characterized by companies concentrating on physical industries as they address the significant flaws in the foundation of the physical world. The firm sees the potential to modernize real-world businesses as analogous to the surge in software-as-a-service companies witnessed in recent decades.
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S2G Ventures, an investment firm specializing in the food, agriculture, ocean, and clean-energy sectors, has successfully raised $300 million for a new fund.
The investment firm has successfully raised funds for Special Opportunities aimed at providing flexible financing to companies focused on long-term positive social and environmental impacts. The fund has invested in five diverse firms, including Circulus, Common Energy, Service 1st Financial, Nova Clean Energy, and Purus Marine. It has also backed Clear Frontier, a business targeting the supply-demand gap in the US organic grain market.
S2G announced that the new fund brings the firm's assets under management to $2 billion, encompassing a diverse portfolio of over 90 companies in the food, agriculture, oceans, seafood, and clean-energy sectors across five countries.
Startup of the Day
San Diego-based smartphone recycler ecoATM has just raised $50 million in funding from existing investors to boost the re-commerce economy.
The smartphone and mobile device recycler plans to utilize the funds to enhance its platform's user experience, advance its technology for automated grading and pricing of used smartphones, and broaden business partnerships to reach a wider customer base. As of January, ecoATM has recycled 38 million smartphones and other mobile devices through its kiosks and Gazelle online marketplace, a significant increase from the 28 million reported in June 2021. The company operates roughly 5,000 kiosks across the United States, located in grocery stores, shopping malls, and various other venues.
Following the Great Recession, ecoATM emerged as a prominent startup in the region and was among the first to graduate from San Diego's EvoNexus incubator program. In 2013, it was acquired by Outerwall for $350 million. Later, investors affiliated with Apollo, a private equity firm, purchased Outerwall for $1.6 billion and divided it into three separate companies – Redbox, Coinstar, and ecoATM – in 2016. In 2020, Cowen Sustainable Advisors invested $200 million for a minority stake in ecoATM. Since its separation from Outerwall, ecoATM has raised approximately $325 million in funding from investors.
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