Blackstone backs Australia, US clean commodities platform
The Blackstone Group has led a USD 400m investment in Xpansiv, an Australia and US-based marketplace for trading clean commodities such as carbon offsets, renewable energy credits (RECs), and low-carbon fuels.
The commitment comes from Blackstone Energy Partners, the firm’s energy-focused private equity business. It is the latest of a string of thematic investments in energy transition and climate solutions made by the unit globally.
The deal comes 18 months after the company secured USD 40m in funding and said it hoped to list in Sydney by the end of 2021. Australia’s Shaw & Partners led the round with support from existing investors including BP Ventures, Oxy Low Carbon Ventures, a subsidiary of Occidental Petroleum, and Macquarie Group. BP, Oxy, and Macquarie put in USD 25m a few weeks earlier.
Xpansiv was formed in 2019 through the merger of Sydney-based commodity spot exchange CBL and San Francisco–based Xpansiv, an environmental, social, and governance (ESG)-focused commodities platform. Its core offering is an integrated, global spot commodity marketplace targeting investors and companies seeking to meet voluntary and compliance-based ESG goals.
Other business units include H2OX, a spot exchange for water in Australia, XSignals, a provider of end-of-day and historical market data, and EMA, a multi-registry portfolio management system for all ESG-inclusive commodities. The new capital will be used to support organic and inorganic growth.
“As more corporations make net-zero commitments, there is an increasing need to efficiently connect them with – and indirectly provide funding for – the most efficient, high-quality developers of CO2 reduction projects,” said David Foley, global head of Blackstone Energy Partners, in a statement.
“Xpansiv has a first-mover advantage, and Blackstone’s investment will enable them to capitalize upon that lead, creating a uniquely positioned company with ownership of critical software, technology, and a scalable exchange for trading voluntary carbon offsets and related environmental products."
He added that clean commodities trading is set to experience exponential growth over the next decade.
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