measurable a startup developing a platform for environmental, social and governance (ESG) data in the real estate space, raised $93 million in a Series D financing tranche co-led by Energy Impact Partners and Sway Ventures.
The round, which Measurebl CEO Matt Ellis described as oversubscribed, brought the company's total raised to more than $170 million. Moderne Ventures, WVV, Suffolk Construction, Broadscale, Camber Creek, Salesforce Ventures, Building Ventures, Constellation Technology Ventures, Concrete Ventures, RET Ventures, Colliers and Lincoln Property Company were among the participants.
“This funding enables Measurebl to further enhance its market-leading ESG technologies, expand into new geographies, and ensure the real estate industry has the investment-grade data needed to transition to a sustainable and profitable future for all,” Ellis said.
Founded in 2013 by Ellis, the former head of sustainability solutions at CBRE, the commercial real estate services and investment firm, Measurebl is on the trend of startups in the ESG sector attracting consolidated venture backing. Measurebl offers tools to manage, benchmark, report and track the sustainability of a real estate business, from building-level operations to steering committee activities and capital markets.
Measurebl's technology can automate the collection of electricity, water, fuel, neighborhood and utility waste data, for example. Or you can keep documents social and governance along with environmental data.
“Measurabl's solutions are critical for companies looking to streamline their operations and gain competitive advantage in an increasingly data-driven world,” Brian Nugent, general partner at Sway Ventures, said in a statement. “As the real estate industry moves towards a more sustainable future, Measurabl's innovative approach to data management will be essential in providing investment-grade reporting and analysis. It's not just about meeting ESG standards; it is a financial imperative.”
According to one poll Dow Jones ESG investments are projected to more than double in the next three years, accounting for 15% of all investments by 2025. But recent political headwinds in the United States that require consideration of ESG factors when making investment decisions, threaten to slow down the growth of the market.
Case in point: During the final months of 2022, investors pulled nearly $6200 billion more out of sustainable funds than they invested, according to Morningstar.
However, the successful financing of Measurabl would suggest that there is still an appetite for ESG. The company's push probably had something to do with it; Measurebl has over 1000 clients and claims to be used by 40% of global real estate asset managers.
Another factor in Measurabl's favor is the growing pressure on the real estate market to change, often in the form of carbon emissions laws at the municipal level. (The reports indicate that real estate generates about 39% of total global emissions, much of it generated by the manufacture of materials used in buildings and the rest from the buildings themselves and the generation of energy to power them). Estimates from the UN climate conference COP26 suggest that $14 trillion worth of buildings will not be insurable over the next 20 years if they do not meet climate and efficiency standards.
“Measurabl is the world's most adopted ESG data management platform for real estate,” Ellis said. “Customers use them for decarbonise buildings, mitigate physical climate risk, comply with regulation and underwrite sustainability risks in real estate transactions”.
