ACT Venture Partners Coöperatief U.A. ("ACT Venture Partners") is committed to providing capital and expertise to sustainable, diverse, and innovative technology companies that aim to create positive change in business, industry, economy, and daily life globally. As ACT Venture Partners, we are fully aware that the decisions given by us will have environmental and social impacts and that we have a critical role in creating a more diverse and inclusive technology ecosystem. Therefore, Responsible Investment Policy is an integral value of ACT Venture Partners in its mission to create long-term value for its investors and portfolio companies.

Environmental, Social, & Governance (ESG)

ACT Venture Partners finds and invests in companies that adhere to the highest social and environmental standards, are socially and environmentally sustainable, and provide equal opportunity. ACT Venture Partners will take Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) guidelines established by the European Venture Capital Association (EVCA) into consideration. ACT Venture Partners is committed to continuously developing its ESG policies and procedures further in a way that they have a positive impact on its investment decisions and portfolio company oversight. ACT Venture Partners also monitors United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment (UNPRI).

ACT Venture Partners will ensure that the labor and working conditions of its employees and investments are assessed against International Labor Organization (ILO) Conventions, national legal framework, and international best practices. ACT Venture Partners will not invest in any project that does not abide by national legal requirements. ACT Venture Partners will follow international standards in countries where the national legal framework for working conditions is not in line with ILO standards.

Diversity and Inclusion

ACT Venture Partners believes diversity and inclusion is a critical success factor for the fund as well as its portfolio companies and sees diversity and inclusion as a core competency of its portfolio companies. Respectful communication, cooperation, teamwork, representation, and participation in all groups are encouraged. Therefore, ACT Venture Partners commits to designing and implementing a formal diversity and inclusion initiative.

According to ACT Venture Partners' principles, the diversity and inclusion policy should be well articulated in the company and a senior executive should be responsible for delivering the objectives. A range of relevant metrics should be monitored, tracked, and published to the extent appropriate. Where appropriate, ACT Venture Partners will prefer to invest in technologies especially led by entrepreneurs from diverse backgrounds.

Investment Process

Pre-Investment

ACT Venture Partners have integrated the assessment of ESG risks and opportunities into its investment processes, starting from the due diligence of investment candidates as well as its investment decisions. Through the due diligence process, ACT Venture Partners seeks evidence of appropriate internal policies, employment, compensation and benefits, environmental issues, insurance, compliance with laws and regulatory matters, and data protection. ACT Venture Partners will also utilize external due diligence specialists as appropriate.

Where due diligence reveals any significant risks and other findings, ACT Venture Partners may refuse to invest in businesses that have material risks that cannot be easily avoided or mitigated. If the identified risks are manageable, a positive investment decision can be made, and ESG-relayed considerations can be included in the investment terms in the contracts.

Post-Investment

ACT Venture Partners is committed to further developing ESG policies and procedures during the ownership and coaching of portfolio companies. We are engaged to monitor and promote compliance with international standards. Portfolio companies are periodically required to provide us with information about their initiatives about ESG and diversity & inclusion initiatives. Besides this, we actively follow up on risks identified in pre-investment and post-investment. We monitor compliance with the terms included in the investment contracts.

We provide coaching to our portfolio companies in defining and implementing new initiatives to foster ESG and diversity & inclusion policies. ACT Venture Partners regularly provides input and advice about new corporate responsibility initiatives and best practices at the board level.