Welcome to BASF Venture Capital

We are the corporate venture capital company of the BASF Group. Since 2001, we have been investing worldwide in young, fast-growing companies and funds related to current and future businesses of BASF.

With our investments we focus on the areas of chemistry, new materials, sustainability, digitalization and new, disruptive business models.

Through targeted interactions with BASF Group's global research, partner and customer network, we support our portfolio companies as an active venture capital investor.

At a glance

8 Locations:

Ludwigshafen (DEU), San Francisco (USA), Boston (USA), Austin (USA), Shanghai (CHN), Sao Paolo (BRA), Mumbai (IND) and Tel Aviv (ISR)

Evergreen fund:

€ 250 million

Investment focus:

New Materials | AgTech | Digitization/Industry 4.0 | New, disruptive business models

Typical investment state:

Seed to series B

Investment strategy

We invest in innovative technologies and/or business models developed by customer-oriented teams.

An important aspect of our investment decisions is the connection of the BASF Group’s strategic and operative interests with the technical and commercial development objectives of young companies.

We invest in all phases of company development. Technological and market-oriented proof of concept is an important argument for us. We generally aim for minority shares – as a rule together with other venture capital syndicate funds.

About us

With offices in San Francisco, Boston, Austin, Shanghai, Sao Paolo, Mumbai and Tel Aviv as well as at group headquarters in Ludwigshafen, we build bridges between young companies and BASF. An experienced venture capital team with financial, business and technological knowhow, backed by the BASF Group’s network of experts, is responsible for examining suitability for investment.

Our portfolio

Our portfolio includes young companies in the fields of new materials, AgTech, digitalization, sustainability and new, disruptive business models.

In addition to these direct investments, BASF Venture Capital also holds shares in technology funds.

Latest News

BASF invests in pioneering Israeli AgTech startup Equinom

Givat Brenner, Israel, and Ludwigshafen, Germany, December 12, 2019 – BASF Venture Capital is the lead investor in a funding round for Israeli AgTech startup Equinom. Equinom's computerized breeding technology provides optimized seeds for the food industry to help it meet growing demand for plant-based products used as ingredients, clean label packed goods and healthier lifestyle cuisine. With this investment, BASF Venture Capital promotes BASF’s strategy of applying innovative solutions in agriculture. Existing investors who also joined this round include, among others, Fortissimo Capital, a leading Israeli private equity fund that invests primarily in the technology, AgTech and industrial sectors, as well as Roquette, a global leader in plant-based ingredients for food, nutrition and health markets and a pioneer in new vegetal proteins.

BASF invests US$ 4 million in AgVentures II fund managed by SP Ventures

São Paulo, Brazil, and Ludwigshafen, Germany, November 18, 2019 – BASF Venture Capital is one of the main investors in the first closing of the Brazilian fund AgVentures II having committed US$ 4 million. The fund is managed by São Paulo-based SP Ventures and focuses on startups from the Latin American agricultural and food (AgFood) sector. The fund aims to support 20 to 25 new companies founded and headquartered in Latin America. Besides BASF, other investors include multinational companies as strategic investors as well as financial investors, international development finance institutions and local family offices. For BASF Venture Capital, this represents the first investment in Brazil.

ESS Inc. Raises $30 million from investor group to expand company and deploy next-generation flow battery energy storage systems

ESS Inc., a leading manufacturer of safe, low-cost and long-duration energy storage systems, announced that it has secured $30 million in a Series C investment round led by Breakthrough Energy Ventures. The funding group includes new investors Evergy Ventures, Softbank Energy and leading Southeast Asia-based chemical company PTT Global Chemical (GC), joining earlier backers who also invested in this round: BASF Venture Capital, Cycle Capital Management, Presidio Partners Investment Management, IPM Group, and Pangaea Ventures.

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