IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/kap/sbusec/v65y2025i1d10.1007_s11187-024-00988-y.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Greening the future: how venture capital nurtures cleantech companies’ growth in Europe

Author

Listed:
  • Matteo Ambrois

    (Politecnico Di Milano, Department of Management, Economics and Industrial Engineering)

  • Annalisa Croce

    (Politecnico Di Milano, Department of Management, Economics and Industrial Engineering)

  • Elisa Ughetto

    (Politecnico Di Torino, Dipartimento di Ingegneria Gestionale e della Produzione)

Abstract

The paper examines the impact of venture capital (VC) financing on the growth of cleantech companies, using newly available data and a more comprehensive perspective on the sector. The analysis is conducted on a sample of 24,538 European cleantech companies identified using machine learning techniques, 401 of which received a first VC investment between 1988 and 2023. To adequately control for selection bias, we applied a matching procedure that allowed the creation of two control groups: one consisting of non-VC-backed cleantech companies and another of non-cleantech VC-backed companies. Our analysis reveals that, in terms of selection, investors discount the inherent risk of the sector by investing in fast-growing cleantech companies. Regarding the impact of VC on invested cleantech companies, when the differences at selection are neutralised, our results suggest that VC effectively supports the growth of invested cleantech companies, with a more pronounced effect in the short term.

Suggested Citation

  • Matteo Ambrois & Annalisa Croce & Elisa Ughetto, 2025. "Greening the future: how venture capital nurtures cleantech companies’ growth in Europe," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 65(1), pages 191-229, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:sbusec:v:65:y:2025:i:1:d:10.1007_s11187-024-00988-y
    DOI: 10.1007/s11187-024-00988-y
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s11187-024-00988-y
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s11187-024-00988-y?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to

    for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Ge, Guoqing & Xue, Jian & Zhang, Qian, 2024. "Industrial policy and governmental venture capital: Evidence from China," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 84(C).
    2. Jeff S. Armstrong & Michael R. Darby & Lynne G. Zucker, 2003. "Commercializing knowledge: university science, knowledge capture and firm performance in biotechnology," Proceedings, Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, issue Sep, pages 149-170.
    3. Evans, David S, 1987. "The Relationship between Firm Growth, Size, and Age: Estimates for 100 Manufacturing Industries," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 35(4), pages 567-581, June.
    4. Madaleno, Mara & Dogan, Eyup & Taskin, Dilvin, 2022. "A step forward on sustainability: The nexus of environmental responsibility, green technology, clean energy and green finance," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 109(C).
    5. Bertoni, Fabio & Colombo, Massimo G. & Grilli, Luca, 2011. "Venture capital financing and the growth of high-tech start-ups: Disentangling treatment from selection effects," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 40(7), pages 1028-1043, September.
    6. Deborah de Lange & Dave Valliere, 2020. "Sustainable firms and legitimacy: Corporate venture capital as an effective endorsement," Journal of Small Business Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 58(6), pages 1187-1220, November.
    7. Bottazzi, Laura & Da Rin, Marco & Hellmann, Thomas, 2008. "Who are the active investors?: Evidence from venture capital," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 89(3), pages 488-512, September.
    8. Anna Goldstein & Claudia Doblinger & Erin Baker & Laura Díaz Anadón, 2020. "Author Correction: Patenting and business outcomes for cleantech startups funded by the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy," Nature Energy, Nature, vol. 5(11), pages 937-937, November.
    9. Engel, Dirk & Keilbach, Max, 2007. "Firm-level implications of early stage venture capital investment -- An empirical investigation," Journal of Empirical Finance, Elsevier, vol. 14(2), pages 150-167, March.
    10. Shai Bernstein & Xavier Giroud & Richard R. Townsend, 2016. "The Impact of Venture Capital Monitoring," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 71(4), pages 1591-1622, August.
    11. Thomas Hellmann & Manju Puri, 2002. "Venture Capital and the Professionalization of Start‐Up Firms: Empirical Evidence," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 57(1), pages 169-197, February.
    12. Criscuolo, Chiara & Menon, Carlo, 2015. "Environmental policies and risk finance in the green sector: Cross-country evidence," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 83(C), pages 38-56.
    13. Gompers, Paul A. & Gornall, Will & Kaplan, Steven N. & Strebulaev, Ilya A., 2020. "How do venture capitalists make decisions?," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 135(1), pages 169-190.
    14. Baum, Joel A. C. & Silverman, Brian S., 2004. "Picking winners or building them? Alliance, intellectual, and human capital as selection criteria in venture financing and performance of biotechnology startups," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 19(3), pages 411-436, May.
    15. Patricia Crifo & Vanina D. Forget, 2015. "The Economics Of Corporate Social Responsibility: A Firm-Level Perspective Survey," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(1), pages 112-130, February.
    16. Giancarlo Giudici & Massimiliano Guerini & Cristina Rossi-Lamastra, 2019. "The creation of cleantech startups at the local level: the role of knowledge availability and environmental awareness," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 52(4), pages 815-830, April.
    17. Colombo, Massimo G. & Grilli, Luca, 2010. "On growth drivers of high-tech start-ups: Exploring the role of founders' human capital and venture capital," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 25(6), pages 610-626, November.
    18. Andrea Bellucci & Serena Fatica & Aliki Georgakaki & Gianluca Gucciardi & Simon Letout & Francesco Pasimeni, 2023. "Venture Capital Financing and Green Patenting," Industry and Innovation, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 30(7), pages 947-983, August.
    19. Shapira, Philip & Gök, Abdullah & Klochikhin, Evgeny & Sensier, Marianne, 2014. "Probing “green” industry enterprises in the UK: A new identification approach," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 85(C), pages 93-104.
    20. Gompers, Paul A, 1995. "Optimal Investment, Monitoring, and the Staging of Venture Capital," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 50(5), pages 1461-1489, December.
    21. van den Heuvel, Matthias & Popp, David, 2023. "The role of venture capital and governments in clean energy: lessons from the first cleantech bubble," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 124(C).
    22. Sardo, Filipe & Serrasqueiro, Zélia & Félix, Elisabete G.S., 2020. "Does Venture Capital affect capital structure rebalancing? The case of small knowledge-intensive service firms," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 53(C), pages 170-179.
    23. Croce, Annalisa & Toschi, Laura & Ughetto, Elisa & Zanni, Sara, 2024. "Cleantech and policy framework in Europe: A machine learning approach," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 186(C).
    24. Steven N. Kaplan & Josh Lerner, 2010. "It Ain't Broke: The Past, Present, and Future of Venture Capital," Journal of Applied Corporate Finance, Morgan Stanley, vol. 22(2), pages 36-47, April.
    25. Denis, David J., 2004. "Entrepreneurial finance: an overview of the issues and evidence," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 10(2), pages 301-326, March.
    26. Martin Huber & Michael Lechner & Andreas Steinmayr, 2015. "Radius matching on the propensity score with bias adjustment: tuning parameters and finite sample behaviour," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 49(1), pages 1-31, August.
    27. Mazzucato, Mariana & Semieniuk, Gregor, 2018. "Financing renewable energy: Who is financing what and why it matters," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 127(C), pages 8-22.
    28. Bertoni, Fabio & Tykvová, Tereza, 2015. "Does governmental venture capital spur invention and innovation? Evidence from young European biotech companies," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 44(4), pages 925-935.
    29. Massimo G. Colombo & Samuele Murtinu, 2017. "Venture Capital Investments in Europe and Portfolio Firms' Economic Performance: Independent Versus Corporate Investors," Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(1), pages 35-66, February.
    30. Thomas J. Chemmanur & Zhaohui Chen, 2014. "Venture Capitalists Versus Angels: The Dynamics of Private Firm Financing Contracts," The Review of Corporate Finance Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 3(1-2), pages 39-86.
    31. Fabio Bertoni & Massimo Colombo & Anita Quas, 2015. "The patterns of venture capital investment in Europe," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 45(3), pages 543-560, October.
    32. Barbieri, Nicolò & Marzucchi, Alberto & Rizzo, Ugo, 2020. "Knowledge sources and impacts on subsequent inventions: Do green technologies differ from non-green ones?," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 49(2).
    33. Anna Goldstein & Claudia Doblinger & Erin Baker & Laura Díaz Anadón, 2020. "Patenting and business outcomes for cleantech startups funded by the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy," Nature Energy, Nature, vol. 5(10), pages 803-810, October.
    34. Thomas J. Chemmanur & Karthik Krishnan & Debarshi K. Nandy, 2011. "How Does Venture Capital Financing Improve Efficiency in Private Firms? A Look Beneath the Surface," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 24(12), pages 4037-4090.
    35. Annalisa Croce & Jose Martí & Carmelo Reverte, 2019. "The role of private versus governmental venture capital in fostering job creation during the crisis," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 53(4), pages 879-900, December.
    36. Cumming, Douglas J. & Leboeuf, Gael & Schwienbacher, Armin, 2017. "Crowdfunding cleantech," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 65(C), pages 292-303.
    37. Zhang, Jing & Fan, Yueqi & Liu, Ye, 2024. "The effects of government venture capital: New evidence from China based on a two-sided matching structural model," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 84(C).
    38. Gaddy, Benjamin E. & Sivaram, Varun & Jones, Timothy B. & Wayman, Libby, 2017. "Venture Capital and Cleantech: The wrong model for energy innovation," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 102(C), pages 385-395.
    39. Markus Fitza & Sharon F. Matusik & Elaine Mosakowski, 2009. "Do VCs matter? the importance of owners on performance variance in start‐up firms," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(4), pages 387-404, April.
    40. Doblinger, Claudia & Surana, Kavita & Anadon, Laura Diaz, 2019. "Governments as partners: The role of alliances in U.S. cleantech startup innovation," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 48(6), pages 1458-1475.
    41. Hornuf, Lars & Schwienbacher, Armin, 2018. "Market mechanisms and funding dynamics in equity crowdfunding," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 50(C), pages 556-574.
    42. Sahlman, William A., 1990. "The structure and governance of venture-capital organizations," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 27(2), pages 473-521, October.
    43. Boris Mrkajic & Samuele Murtinu & Vittoria G. Scalera, 2019. "Is green the new gold? Venture capital and green entrepreneurship," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 52(4), pages 929-950, April.
    44. Grilli, Luca & Murtinu, Samuele, 2014. "Government, venture capital and the growth of European high-tech entrepreneurial firms," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 43(9), pages 1523-1543.
    45. Paul Gompers & Josh Lerner, 2001. "The Venture Capital Revolution," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 15(2), pages 145-168, Spring.
    46. Davila, Antonio & Foster, George & Gupta, Mahendra, 2003. "Venture capital financing and the growth of startup firms," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 18(6), pages 689-708, November.
    47. Mansouri, Sasan & Momtaz, Paul P., 2022. "Financing sustainable entrepreneurship: ESG measurement, valuation, and performance," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 37(6).
    48. Gompers, Paul A., 1996. "Grandstanding in the venture capital industry," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 42(1), pages 133-156, September.
    49. Michael Migendt & Friedemann Polzin & Florian Schock & Florian A Täube & Paschen von Flotow, 2017. "Beyond venture capital: an exploratory study of the finance-innovation-policy nexus in cleantech," Industrial and Corporate Change, Oxford University Press and the Associazione ICC, vol. 26(6), pages 973-996.
    50. Iacus, Stefano M. & King, Gary & Porro, Giuseppe, 2012. "Causal Inference without Balance Checking: Coarsened Exact Matching," Political Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 20(1), pages 1-24, January.
    51. Drobetz, Wolfgang & El Ghoul, Sadok & Guedhami, Omrane & Hackmann, Jan P. & Momtaz, Paul P., 2024. "Entrepreneurial finance and sustainability: Do institutional investors impact the ESG performance of SMEs?," Journal of Business Venturing Insights, Elsevier, vol. 22(C).
    52. Croce, Annalisa & Martí, José & Murtinu, Samuele, 2013. "The impact of venture capital on the productivity growth of European entrepreneurial firms: ‘Screening’ or ‘value added’ effect?," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 28(4), pages 489-510.
    53. Cumming, Douglas & Henriques, Irene & Sadorsky, Perry, 2016. "‘Cleantech’ venture capital around the world," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 86-97.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Lohwasser, Todor S., 2020. "Meta-analyzing the relative performance of venture capital-backed firms," Discussion Papers of the Institute for Organisational Economics 4/2020, University of Münster, Institute for Organisational Economics.
    2. Croce, Annalisa & Martí, José & Murtinu, Samuele, 2013. "The impact of venture capital on the productivity growth of European entrepreneurial firms: ‘Screening’ or ‘value added’ effect?," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 28(4), pages 489-510.
    3. Guerini, Massimiliano & Quas, Anita, 2016. "Governmental venture capital in Europe: Screening and certification," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 31(2), pages 175-195.
    4. Rin, Marco Da & Hellmann, Thomas & Puri, Manju, 2013. "A Survey of Venture Capital Research," Handbook of the Economics of Finance, in: G.M. Constantinides & M. Harris & R. M. Stulz (ed.), Handbook of the Economics of Finance, volume 2, chapter 0, pages 573-648, Elsevier.
    5. Bonini, Stefano & Capizzi, Vincenzo & Zocchi, Paola, 2019. "The performance of angel-backed companies," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 100(C), pages 328-345.
    6. Anita Quas & Jose Martí & Carmelo Reverte, 2021. "What money cannot buy: a new approach to measure venture capital ability to add non-financial resources," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 57(3), pages 1361-1382, October.
    7. Thomas Standaert & Sophie Manigart, 2018. "Government as fund-of-fund and VC fund sponsors: effect on employment in portfolio companies," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 50(2), pages 357-373, February.
    8. Colombo, Massimo G. & D’Adda, Diego & Pirelli, Lorenzo H., 2016. "The participation of new technology-based firms in EU-funded R&D partnerships: The role of venture capital," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 45(2), pages 361-375.
    9. Annalisa Croce & Jose Martí & Carmelo Reverte, 2019. "The role of private versus governmental venture capital in fostering job creation during the crisis," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 53(4), pages 879-900, December.
    10. Polzin, Friedemann & Sanders, Mark & Stavlöt, Ulrika, 2018. "Do investors and entrepreneurs match? – Evidence from The Netherlands and Sweden," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 127(C), pages 112-126.
    11. Gill, Andrej & Heller, David & Michel, Nina A., 2024. "Enabling or accelerating? The timing of innovation and the different roles of venture capitalists," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 53(8).
    12. Tereza Tykvová, 2018. "Venture capital and private equity financing: an overview of recent literature and an agenda for future research," Journal of Business Economics, Springer, vol. 88(3), pages 325-362, May.
    13. Fabio Bertoni & Diego D’Adda & Luca Grilli, 2016. "Cherry-picking or frog-kissing? A theoretical analysis of how investors select entrepreneurial ventures in thin venture capital markets," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 46(3), pages 391-405, March.
    14. Grilli, Luca & Murtinu, Samuele, 2014. "Government, venture capital and the growth of European high-tech entrepreneurial firms," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 43(9), pages 1523-1543.
    15. Erik Engberg & Patrik Gustavsson Tingvall & Daniel Halvarsson, 2021. "Direct and indirect effects of private- and government-sponsored venture capital," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 60(2), pages 701-735, February.
    16. Valérie Revest & Alessandro Sapio, 2012. "Financing technology-based small firms in Europe: what do we know?," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 39(1), pages 179-205, July.
    17. Iqbal Muhammad & Stéphanie Serve, 2025. "Performance of government venture capital (GVC): an Asian perspective," International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal, Springer, vol. 21(1), pages 1-34, December.
    18. María Jesús Rodríguez-Gulías & David Rodeiro-Pazos & Sara Fernández-López & Christian Corsi & Antonio Prencipe, 2018. "The role of venture capitalist to enhance the growth of Spanish and Italian university spin-offs," International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal, Springer, vol. 14(4), pages 1111-1130, December.
    19. Rosenbusch, Nina & Brinckmann, Jan & Müller, Verena, 2013. "Does acquiring venture capital pay off for the funded firms? A meta-analysis on the relationship between venture capital investment and funded firm financial performance," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 28(3), pages 335-353.
    20. Bertoni, Fabio & Croce, Annalisa & Guerini, Massimiliano, 2015. "Venture capital and the investment curve of young high-tech companies," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 35(C), pages 159-176.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    JEL classification:

    • G24 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Investment Banking; Venture Capital; Brokerage
    • G30 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - General
    • Q01 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - General - - - Sustainable Development
    • Q55 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Environmental Economics: Technological Innovation

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:kap:sbusec:v:65:y:2025:i:1:d:10.1007_s11187-024-00988-y. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.