Octave Capital and Katapult Ocean have launched a USD 75 million (EUR 63 million) impact investment fund dubbed the Asia Ocean Fund.
The two organizations signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) establishing the fund, which will focus on investing in Asia's ocean sector.
Octave Capital is an impact investment firm, while Katapult Ocean is an impact venture fund manager that invests in companies restoring ocean health and combating climate change and biodiversity loss.
“Oceans are a shared global lifeline and an investment frontier for regeneration. Asia is at the frontline of both challenges and opportunities. By channeling capital into ocean solutions here, investors can unlock growth while tackling urgent environmental and social needs,” Octave Capital CEO and Executive Director May Liew said in a release. “With Katapult Ocean, Octave Capital is harnessing our maritime roots and systems perspective to build an investment platform that restores, not extracts.”
The two partner organizations said the new fund will focus on six key sectors – maritime decarbonization, ocean renewable energy, green shipping infrastructure, ocean biodiversity and restoration solutions, circular resources, and sustainable aquaculture and marine biotechnology. The first accelerator using the fund will launch in H1 2026, and the organizations said they are targeting over 20 investments over the next five years.
“Asia’s blue economy holds immense promise, but what’s been missing is the bridge between innovation and capital,” Katapult Ocean CEO Jonas Skattum Svegaarden said. “The Asia Ocean fund is that bridge – derisking early-stage ventures, attracting broader investment, and empowering entrepreneurs and the Asian ecosystem to drive the global transition towards a thriving ocean economy.”
Katapult said investment in ocean startups in Asia has made progress but is still lagging behind other regions of the world. The Asia Ocean Fund is designed to close the gap and support and accelerate growth of ocean-tech startups.
Ocean impact funds have seen tremendous growth in recent years.
Recently, SWEN Capital Partners launched its SWEN Blue Ocean 2 impact fund and raised EUR 160 million (USD 189 million) toward ocean regeneration. Bluefront Equity also recently closed its second impact fund, Bluefront Capital II, with USD 100 million (EUR 84 million) in investments.
