Verna secures £860k in pre-seed funding from Vanneck EIS and Octopus Ventures to expand land management software.
The funding round was led by Vanneck EIS to support business growth and product development.
London-based NatureTech startup Verna has developed a software platform that helps businesses and public bodies plan, implement, and monitor long-term nature recovery projects.
Verna has secured £860k in its first equity investment round to fund company growth and the development of new products and services. The financing was led by Vanneck EIS alongside participation from Octopus Ventures. This latest capital injection brings the start-up's recent announced funding total to over £2.2m, following a previous £1.4m UK Government innovation contract.
The green-tech start-up offers software tools including ForestFounder, which assists in identifying and evaluating sites for tree-planting. The fresh funds will allow the business to expand its capabilities beyond forestry to cover other environmental interventions such as peatland restoration and grassland enhancement.
Customers for the firm's existing platform include National Highways, the Environment Agency, and Forestry England. The enterprise aims to equip landowners, investors, and public bodies with integrated data spanning science, economics, and regulation.
From the founder
"Making the best decisions about how to use land is vital to addressing the climate and biodiversity crises, but is an increasingly complex challenge. With backing from Vanneck EIS and Octopus Ventures, our new tools will help landowners, investors, and public bodies combine data across science, economics, and regulation to see the potential of land and choose the right way forward."
Matthew Brown
Co-founder at Verna
Investor perspective
"We’re so excited to add Verna to the Octopus Ventures community, as it has the potential to make a real difference for nature and the climate at scale. The Verna team have years’ worth of both public and private experience, deep knowledge of their sector and the network to deliver their vision."
Kirsten Connell
Partner, Octopus
Use of funds
- 01Grow the team
- 02Continue product development