EcoVadis SAS, the world leader in business sustainability ratings for global supply chains, today announced that it has agreed a c. $200m investment from CVC Growth Partners II. This transaction represents one of the largest investments in the ESG space to date and reflects a shared long-term vision for the importance of ESG to business success. EcoVadis will leverage the funding to scale globally and engrain sustainability, fair labour practices and ethics into enterprise supply chains and business commerce.

“The combination of global sustainability initiatives, evolving compliance regulations and corporate purpose commitments are putting a new and urgent spotlight on the supply chain – and creating an immense and growing market for our solutions,” said Frédéric Trinel, co-founder and co-CEO of EcoVadis. “CVC’s global network and reach will play a critical role in helping us scale and change the way businesses operate.”

“Momentum towards a more environmentally and societally focused economy has been building for years. Today’s executives recognise the power of sustainability to protect their brands, increase valuation, inform investment strategies and positively impact the world,” said Pierre-Francois Thaler, co-CEO and co-founder of EcoVadis. “The supply chain is the single greatest lever for creating real change and making an impact. But when left unmanaged, it becomes a breeding ground for hidden risk – including forced labor, environmental waste, corruption, security issues and more. This investment from CVC Growth Partners is a testament to the critical role that ESG and sustainability factors play in today’s market.”

More than 450 enterprises – representing over $2.5 trillion in business spending – rely on EcoVadis’ supplier ratings and engagement platform to evaluate and improve environmental and social performance across their global supply chains. EcoVadis’ evidence-based assessment methodology, delivered via a sophisticated SaaS platform and backed by a dedicated team of CSR analysts, is the most trusted and adopted approach in the industry. Today, EcoVadis’ network of assessed companies tops 60,000 across 155 countries.

EcoVadis continues to experience rapid growth across its global customer base. In 2019 the Company added 10,000 companies to its network and opened new offices in Tokyo, San Francisco and Melbourne. EcoVadis plans to leverage the funding to expand internationally, break into new countries and further invest in its technology platform, sustainability intelligence solutions and network of rated companies.

Aaron Dupuis, Senior Managing Director at CVC Growth Partners commented, “We are delighted to partner with Frédéric, Pierre-Francois and the rest of the EcoVadis team in this next phase of growth for the company. We have followed EcoVadis for several years as part of our long-standing efforts in supply chain risk management, where we identified ESG as a particular area of focus for best-in-class companies, and are incredibly excited about the immense opportunities that lie ahead for the company, as it continues to establish itself as the gold standard for ESG ratings. This is the first investment from CVC Growth Partners’ second fund, which announced its final close late last year.”

“Environmental, social and governance issues are critical to business success, economic growth and societal improvement,” said Sebastian Kuenne, Managing Director who leads CVC Growth Partners in Europe. “At the core of CVC’s approach to building better businesses is always a detailed sustainable value creation plan that is anchored in fundamental ESG principles. EcoVadis’ unique assessment platform and expansive supplier network are proven to improve sustainability outcomes and accelerate business performance. We are proud to partner with a team that provides meaningful value not only to their customers but also to broader society and our environment and are excited to support EcoVadis with the full weight of the CVC network.”

John Clark, Managing Partner of CVC Growth Partners, Aaron Dupuis and Sebastian Kuenne will be joining EcoVadis’ board of directors.

“EcoVadis is fast becoming the world-leading platform for supplier ESG ratings, and Partech is very excited to continue the journey with the company and its founders, and to welcome our new partner CVC,” added Omri Benayoun, General Partner at Partech and a board member of EcoVadis since 2016.

The transaction is expected to close in Q1 2020 following regulatory approvals.