Asuene raises USD 5.3m in Series C 2nd close, and makes first acquisition

Asuene has successfully raised approximately USD 5.3m in the 2nd close of its Series C round through a third-party allocation of shares with investors including Japan Green Investment Corp. for Carbon Neutrality (JICN), Nippon Life Insurance (via Nippon Life Strategic Fund I), JERA, Pavilion Capital, and individual investor Hidetaka Kojima. This round brings the total Series C funding to USD 33m, with aggregate fundraising reaching USD 67m.

Asuene is advancing multiple products in the climate tech field, focusing on decarbonization and ESG. Driven by the mission “Changing the world for the next generation.”, the company continues to grow.

“ASUENE”, a carbon accounting platform, has surpassed 9,000 customers in Japan with over 140 partner companies. The ESG evaluation cloud “ASUENE ESG” has over 14,000 evaluated customers, driving ESG management for many businesses. Additionally, through its joint venture “Carbon EX” with SBI Holdings, Asuene offers a carbon credit and emissions trading platform, with over 1,200 companies registered on the platform.

Beyond Japan, Asuene has established ASUENE APAC in Singapore and ASUENE USA in the United States, acquiring several dozen overseas customers and partners. Furthermore, Asuene has set up a global development center in the Philippines, hiring many local engineers to drive global business growth.

Asuene Veritas

Asuene has completed an M&A deal for CoRocket, a third-party verification business for non-financial data. Along with acquiring personnel and resources, Asuene established a new company, Asuene Veritas, on August 1, 2024. Asuene Veritas provides third-party verification for climate change and non-financial data, offering one-stop support from third-party assurance to verification during disclosure.

As Asuene supports companies with calculating CO2 emissions data and other non-financial information, the company has recognized a growing demand for third-party verification and validation of data, as well as system functionalities to enhance third-party assurance and future audits. Starting from the fiscal year ending March 2027, large corporations with a market capitalization of over JPY 3 trillion are expected to be required to disclose information related to sustainability and climate change, making third-party verification and auditing of non-financial information an urgent issue.

To meet these customer needs, Asuene has been in discussions with CoRocket and has established a new company, “Asuene Veritas,” utilizing their talented personnel and assets. From CoRocket, Asuene has acquired highly specialized personnel previously engaged at major audit firms and will deepen business partnerships in the future. With this, “Asuene Veritas” will be able to provide third-party verification services for non-financial data, as well as a wide range of climate change advisory services, including support for CSRD compliance.

“Asuene Veritas” will strengthen its service capabilities for both existing and new customers of “ASUENE,” aiming to expand third-party verification and assurance in the non-financial domain and grow its advisory business.

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