Empower Tomorrow, Invest Today
The world's pressing challenges require the boldest pioneers. We back them.
Pioneers
Our Entrepreneurs, Team and Backers: Together for a brighter tomorrow
Dana and Erik are passionate scientist and tech entrepreneurs by heart. Together with the entire Circonomit team they are building the world’s environmental data infrastructure on the intersection of sustainability, finance, and digitalization.
Max understands the power of community like no other. Together with his team members from fainin, he democratizes the sharing economy and redefines ownership and access to technology entirely.
For Nina and Fabian and their team, no challenge is too big and no topic is taboo. Together with Fabian, they are transforming wastewater treatment plants into power plants for renewable energy.
Tobias is an entrepreneur who has spent years researching and advising in impact investing. He is also an M&A consultant with extensive industry knowledge. He is the face of the Club and the architect behind the Bright Future Club VC.
Niklas is a true visionary and a strong networker with a hands-on mentality. He is an entrepreneur himself, a philanthropist, and a Venture Partner in the Bright Future Club.
Bright Future Club
We are pioneers ourselves
We're pioneers at heart, having journeyed the path of founders ourselves, familiar with its challenges and triumphs. With years of experience in impact investing, we know what truly counts.
Today, we are not just building another VC; we are crafting the impact VC we once dreamt of as founders. Fueled by our passion for driving meaningful change, we embrace the most pressing challenges head-on. It's the absolute will of moving the needle, bit by bit, that keeps us going every day.
Our commitments go beyond financial support; we're in it for the long run. In a world fraught with uncertainty, we stand firm. We're collaborative co-pilots, navigating alongside our founders, driven by a determination to ensure success along the triple bottom line.
The Bright Future Club is more than just a mere collection of individual investments. We leverage the power of our network of expert advisors and entrepreneurial investors, as well as the synergies among the startups we support. We are a community of changemakers on a mission to connect the dots. Together, we carve a path to greatness with determination and a unique club-like atmosphere.
Co-piloting to Success
Every investor provides money and smart investors may offer their network and expertise. Only the best build self-fertilizing communities, and only we see the world through the eyes of the founders.
As still young entrepreneurs ourselves, we can put ourselves in the shoes of young founders, intervening where others keep their distance and building connections that go beyond the ordinary. We gain insights and deal flow that other investors can’t, but still: young investors and expertise? How does that work? We combine boldness and strong expertise, thanks to a unique community of mentors, partners and smart investors, as well as the experience we have gained from our own mistakes and successes. Our limited partners consist of successful entrepreneurs, former founders, and, last but not least, successful family businesses with decades of expertise.
We pursue a special approach: we invest early, very early. Our goal is to close the gap between business angels and institutional investors. We are co-pilots, navigating through the feared Valley of Death - the phase between first traction and scaling. The goal is always aligned and clear: together, we bridge the best ideas into growth and beyond.
What our Entrepreneurs say
“If I could name all the reasons why Tobias and the team are different & outstanding, I would need half a book. Let’s just name a few: They are honest and straightforward, they deliver and they execute. They jump in for an operational task if things go wild and squeeze in the extra hour. And they are very serious about the impact topic. Lot of people out there start to call themselves impact investors, but with them, I am 110% sure it comes from the bottom of their hearts. On the same side, they are very rational, with a financial background that makes a unique and powerful combination to work with.”
"The Bright Future Club creates an exceptional network by bringing together innovative leaders from the old and new economy and facilitating an exchange of ideas. We admire their authenticity and proactive engagement not only as investors but also as mentors. They have a clear vision, good values and actively participate, often jumping in to support on critical issues when needed and always finding an extra hour to move forward. Combined with their solid financial expertise, they provide an advantage to any founder working towards a better future.”
“The BFC has been an absolute game changer for Shit2Power. From day one, their commitment to our vision has been unwavering. They bring more than just investment and belief in the potential of our team: Their a hands-on approach to tackling challenges together is just the right amount of investor engagement and founders independence. Their genuine passion for impact investing, coupled with sharp financial acumen, makes them a powerhouse partner for any entrepreneur aiming to make a real difference. Working with BFC means having not just investors, but true allies by your side.”
Manifesto
We are at a transition point in the global economy. What was predicted by the Club of Rome back in 1972 is now becoming apparent in linear business concepts. We have exhausted the limits of growth and are forced to rethink in order to operate within planetary boundaries and in harmony with nature, our health but also with capitalism.
This often criticized capitalism is not perfect, but it has a decisive advantage: if an idea is economically successful, it will prevail, and if it is more successful than the status quo, it will inevitably lead to disruption. We aim to use this leverage and see huge potential in sustainable technologies and circular business models and no economic reason why they should not have the power to transform entire broken industries.
However, this transformation is not possible without a thriving society. Environmental and economic evolution always goes hand in hand with developments in health and education. Or to put it more clearly: success is measured along the triple bottom line. That's why we see particular potential in Climate Tech & Circular Business Models, but also in Health- and EdTech.
Capitalism and the Triple Bottom Line.
Impact Investing
Our Impact Due Diligence Framework for Measurable Impact Reporting
Impact investing is often mistakenly confused with philanthropy. It is often claimed that impact investing is only possible with financial sacrifice. However, this is by no means the case. Both the GIIN (Global Impact Investing Network) and TONIC (The Opportunity Network for Impact Investing and Collaborative Capital) definitions state that impact investing encompasses investments that are made with the aim of achieving a measurable positive social or environmental impact alongside financial returns (and not at the expense of financial returns). We also believe that impact investing has the ability to
generate significant financial outperformance (alpha) over the long term, as humanity's most pressing challenges also create the greatest and most disruptive economic opportunities.Together with the HHL Leipzig Graduate School of Management, we have developed an impact due diligence framework and perfected it over the years. This not only enables us to select suitable impact cases, but also precisely identifies them and lays the foundation for impact quantification, suitable KPIs and reporting. Each of our investments is subject to a three- step impact due diligence framework:
Impact Business Model & Exclusion
- Focus on business models with inherent impact and scaling potential.
- Exclusion of any adverse effects on society or the planet.
Impact investing fundamentally differs from ESG & SRI investing, as well as philanthropy. We seek business models with an inherent scalable impact. The goal is for an investment to increase or enable impact, alongside financial returns, while excluding any other socio-ecological harm.
Identification of Impact
- Specifically name the Impact and the identify the addressed UN SDG Sub-Target
- Alternatives: Planetary Boundary Framework or B-Corp Impact Areas.
We prioritize clarity and recognition of impact through widely accepted frameworks like the UN SDGs, including their Subtargets and Indicators. Business models that don't align with these standards, or other broadly accepted frameworks, aren't viable investment options for our impact investing goals. That includes soft or fabricated impact factors, such as customer satisfaction, compensation or offsetting.
Impact Quantification & Reporting
- Align on at least one quantitative KPI, that can be measured and reported to validate the impact.
- Preferably, use science-based KPIs and avoid qualitative or speculative indicators.
The most decicive step in impact due diligence is identifying a measurable impact metric in collaboration with the startup, through which the impact return can be quantified and reported to relevant stakeholders. The greater the scientific foundation of those KPIs, the better. It is also prudent to conduct LCAs. Without a central impact KPI, there is no impact investment case.
Got any questions?
Startups
Strategy
Our Investment Strategy Scope and Hypothesis
We are a pan-european early-stage investor, with a primary emphasis on the dynamic landscape of the German market. With an initial investment of up to half a million and a hands-on approach to portfolio management, we're not just investors – we're partners in growth. While we don't adhere to strict equity quotas, we're steadfast in our dedication for the long haul, reserving 50% of volume for follow-on investments. We are keen to take the lead in investment rounds, but we also participate in co-investments and offer angel pooling and syndicate building services.
Our strategy embodies a smart money approach. We invest early to bridge the gap between Business Angels and Institutional Investors, leveraging our extensive network of smart investors, mentors, and partners.
While our primary investment scope is measurable and meaningful impact, we're not limited to any particular industry or sector. However, we've identified four key hypotheses that drive our investment strategy, guiding our focus and commitment to transformative ventures.
Human thinking tends to follow linear growth curves. Yet, infinite linear growth is simply not feasible with finite resources. However, when we shift to circular thinking, we break through this paradox. Circular business models and the circular economy have the potential to unveil new growth perspectives and disrupt entire industries. We firmly believe that at every level of the circular economy, whether it's at the data level, operational level, or consumer level, massive transformational potential exists, across all markets and market sizes.
Climate protection isn't just about legislation and politics; it's also an opportunity to build remarkable companies. Germany, in particular, is an excellent hub for deep tech and climate tech developments, with global demand on the rise. We believe in a renaissance of German engineering prowess and foresee massive growth potential in the Climate Tech sector. Alongside intelligent software solutions, we explicitly believe in disruptive hardware technology in the early stages.
Education is the greatest social lever we possess, laying the foundation for our future society and prosperity. Yet, we're still grappling with outdated educational concepts, a lack of media and digital literacy, and insufficient expertise in truly relevant fields. Moreover, access to quality education isn't always guaranteed, even here in Europe. That's why EdTech business models offer not only economic opportunities but, more importantly, social ones.
We also recognize significant educational needs in many transformative fields, such as sustainability, AI, or the circular economy, which can be addressed through innovative solutions and offer significant investment opportunities.
Amidst all the talk about artificial intelligence, virtual worlds, abstract software, and groundbreaking innovations, let's not forget one crucial thing: behind all these advancements are humans. We, the humans, are both beneficiaries and victims of these advancements, but only a healthy society can become economically successful. The COVID-19 pandemic painfully demonstrated how fragile our society is and how vulnerable our health can be. However, it also highlighted the enormous economic potential within the healthcare sector. For us, healthcare is the fourth pillar of our conviction, alongside education, preserving our planet, and rethinking outdated economic structures.
Get in touch
Tobias Schmitt
Partner