Astarte and Sporos Platform establish partnership to focus on The Circular Economy
Sporos Platform ("Sporos"), the first Circular Economy Fund in Southeast Europe, and Astarte Capital Partners ("Astarte"), a sustainable real assets-focused investment firm, are pleased to announce the establishment of their partnership that will focus on investments in sustainability and green entrepreneurship in South East Europe.
Sporos’ investment strategy is driven by the dynamics of "circular investment" and the needs of growing small and medium-sized enterprises for more efficient and flexible financing solutions. Through its extensive network and established strategic partnerships with leading stakeholders and working with a variety of companies in Greece over past two years, Sporos has gained unique access to high value-add investment opportunities, as it plans its first investment execution in 2021.
Sporos focuses on specific sectors with high export potential, environmental impact and circularity-enabling capacity based on a Smart focused Strategy, prioritizing Clean Energy & Logistics, Blue Growth & Sustainable Tourism, Bioeconomy & Agri-food, Industrial Symbiosis & Remanufacturing, and Chemicals & Plastics. The company has already attracted several institutional investors and is teaming up with a number of key stakeholders within the sustainable investment industry.
Giorgos Kofinakos, Chairman of the Investment Committee of Sporos Platform:
"Our goal is for Greece to become the first country in Southeast Europe with an Impact Investment Fund focused on the Circular Economy. We provide flexible financing solutions and specialized advisory services that can unlock the growth potential of Greece 2.0, providing capital and assisting with development of Green Business Plans. In this context, our partnership with Astarte, a global leader in the field of Impact Investing, reinforces our efforts, with the team’s industry knowledge and investment experience, as well as their strong and ever-growing international network. Sporos aims to create a "Circular Success story" focusing on responsible and sustainable investments.”
Dr. Stavros Siokos, co-founder of Astarte Capital Partners, added:
"We are pleased to announce our partnership with Sporos, a dynamic and experienced team that plans to manage the first Impact Investment Fund in Southeast Europe focusing on the Circular Economy. This is a fast-growing investment area, with great potential, as it is an important driver of sustainability – with significant environmental and social benefits for all. We are confident that Astarte's investment experience in this field, combined with the creativity of the Sporos team, will enable our partnership to take advantage of the unique opportunities offered by this industry in Southeast Europe."
About Astarte Capital Partners
Astarte Capital Partners is a London headquartered investment firm with presence in New York, Sydney and Toronto, and a focus on real assets globally. Astarte’s investment strategy is to build institutional quality investment platforms focused on real asset-backed strategies. These platforms are built in partnership with experienced operating teams, with deep expertise in areas such as natural resources, infrastructure, and real estate. By partnering with expert operators, Astarte provides investors with exposure to differentiated and attractive assets that are often inaccessible without specialist industry knowledge and expertise. The Astarte team has over 300 years of combined experience in asset management and investment fund formation, working closely with and institutionalizing operating teams and emerging managers.
About Sporos Platform
Sporos is an alternative investment management firm based in Athens Greece, which is in the process to create the first Circular Economy Fund in Southeast Europe. Combining flexible financial solutions, specialized advisory services and a holistic ESG methodology for measuring positive impact, it has been internationally recognized for its best practices, focusing on high value-add investments for small and medium-sized enterprises in Greece.
Sporos' mission is to effectively support the sustainable development of the real economy in Greece and the wider region, strengthening the transition of creative enterprises to the Circular Economy, aiming to strengthen climate resilience, export orientation and job creation at a regional level.