Adam Neumann's Flowcarbon raises $70mn through VC funding, token sales
What's the story
WeWork co-founder Adam Neumann is back with a new blockchain-based carbon credit company dubbed 'Flowcarbon.' The startup has now raised $70 million in a funding round led by Andreessen Horowitz's crypto division. The funding included $32 million from VC firms, while the rest was raised from the sale of FlowCarbon's cryptocurrency called 'Goddess Nature Token' (GNT) - a digital token on the Celo blockchain.
Context
Why does this story matter?
During his time at WeWork, Adam Neumann was known for his unhinged style of entrepreneurship. His 'corporate spirituality' had dumbfounded many. Now, the billionaire has entered a larger-than-life field that incorporates everything with Flowcarbon. And despite the criticisms he faced during his time at WeWork, venture capitalists still seem to believe in the eccentric CEO's potential to make them some big bucks.
About the company
What is Flowcarbon?
Flowcarbon helps companies purchase credit on the carbon offset market through Goddess Nature Token (GNT). The start-up makes it easy for companies wanting to reduce their carbon footprint. These credits are then traded on crypto exchanges. For projects that sell carbon credits, this is an easy way of raising capital, as Neumann's company charges credit providers only 2% as tokenization fee.
Information
The funding included a traditional venture round and token sales
Flowcarbon's funding was led by Andreessen Horowitz's a16z crypto. Other participants in the venture round included General Catalyst, Samsung Next, 166 2nd, Sam and Ashley Levinson, RSE Ventures, and Allegory Labs. Fifth Wall, Box Group, and Celo Foundation took part in the token sale.
Scam
Only 5% of credits remove carbon from atmosphere: Bloomberg
Carbon offset market is a laxly regulated field. In this market, companies that add more carbon to the atmosphere can pay for projects that reduce carbon using credits. However, a Bloomberg report says that only 5% of these credits decrease the levels of carbon emission. There are also reports of multinational corporations buying large chunks of land that are not threatened to 'greenwash' themselves.
Information
Several firms have hopped on crypto's regenerative finance movement
Flowcarbon is not the first to leverage blockchain technology to solve environmental issues. Other projects working on crypto-based carbon credit solutions are Toucan, Regen, Moss, and KimaDAO.