Deal: Lander & Rogers has advised Australian venture capital firm AirTree Ventures in a $6.3 million Series A capital raise to fund ESG software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform FairSupply, which provides corporates and institutions with visibility over ESG risk in supply chains and investment portfolios.

Area: Venture capital

Value: $6.3 million capital raise

Key players: The Landers team was led by partner Jared Smith, who was supported by special counsel David Tink and senior associate Jennifer Goh.

Deal significance: Speaking about the investment, Mr Smith said that ESG is a high-growth market as regulators globally crack down on corporate greenwashing.

“Regulators, investors and customers are increasingly demanding greater transparency and reporting from companies in relation to ESG. The capital raise will support FairSupply to expand internationally at a critical juncture in the ESG movement,” he advised.

“We’re delighted to lead AirTree’s capital raise to help FairSupply to accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable supply chains.”

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AirTree partner Jackie Vullinghs added that the “doctrine that a business’s only responsibility is to increase profits feels outdated in a world where the long-term environmental and societal impacts of unbridled capitalism cry out from news stories every day”.

“Many investors now demand companies report on their ESG impact; however, to do so, you need data, and it’s still extremely difficult to get objective data across a company’s supply chain,” she said.

However, Ms Vullinghs continued, this is changing.

“FairSupply has mapped over 60 billion global supply chains, uniquely enabling it to identify modern slavery, biodiversity and water-use risks, not just risks associated with carbon emissions.”