Investor Profile: Planet First Partners — Thesis, Cheque Size & How to Apply

Planet First Partners funding is for founders who want growth capital and an ironclad sustainability mandate in one package. The London-based growth equity platform runs an Article 9 fund under the EU's Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation — the strictest SFDR classification, reserved for funds with sustainable investment as their objective. For founders asking how to get funding from Planet First Partners, it backs Series B and Series C growth-stage companies in Europe and Israel whose products make a measurable contribution to environmental or social goals.

Planet First Partners funding: thesis and sectors

Founded in 2020 by Frédéric de Mévius and Alexander de Wit — de Mévius previously spent nearly 25 years at family-owned evergreen investor Verlinvest — the firm's thesis is "better for you, better for the planet". On the B2C side it targets consumer health, farm to fork and circularity; on the B2B side, energy transition, green cities and industry 4.0. Every deal must show substantial contribution to an EU objective with no significant harm to others, a methodology verified by Bluemark — and part of the GP's carried interest is tied to achieving sustainability targets.

Fund size and cheque size

Planet First Partners raised €450 million for its evergreen sustainable-economy fund, significantly surpassing its initial €350 million target after a commitment from Ingka Investments, the investment arm of IKEA's parent Ingka Group. The LP base spans family offices, sovereign wealth funds and institutional investors, alongside tech entrepreneurs. The fund backs 10–15 companies with initial tickets of €10m–€30m and up to €50m available per company, taking minority positions as lead or co-lead with board seats and strong minority rights.

Notable portfolio

Portfolio companies include Sunfire (industrial electrolysers producing renewable hydrogen and syngas), Submer (immersion cooling technology cutting data centres' CO2 footprint and water use), Polymateria (biodegradable and compostable plastics via its Lyfecycle brand) and THIS (plant-based meats, which closed a £20 million Series C equity round through the firm). Through its ecosystem fund investments it also backs Eka Ventures (whose companies include zero-emission delivery service Hived and sustainable packaging platform Sourceful) and Nanogence (smart catalysts cutting cement emissions by up to 40%).

Partners and team

Frédéric de Mévius serves as Executive Chairman and Managing Partner, with partners including Andreea Constantinescu. The mission-aligned advisory board includes Alejandro Agag (founder of Formula E and Extreme E), Connie Collingworth (COO of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation) and Guy Verhofstadt, the former Belgian prime minister.

How to apply for funding

Planet First Partners is a growth-equity investor, not an accelerator — there is no open application form. Growth-stage founders with proven products in its sustainability verticals should approach the team through planetfirst.partners; expect rigorous sustainability due diligence, since Article 9 compliance is non-negotiable.