October 2025

Michiel van Asbeck is an impact investor focused on climate. After selling his company in 2022, he began investing in the energy transition, particularly in sustainable innovation and scalable initiatives. He invests both in funds and directly, with visionary but realistic entrepreneurs. 

How did you get started with impact investing?

For years, I had my own company (an HR secondment and recruitment agency), and all my time and money were tied up in that. When I sold the company, I suddenly had a lot of both. At first, I did the rounds with some traditional wealth managers, but I found their offering rather disappointing. It was then that I met Edmond on a ski trip in the North of Norway, who recommended investing in impact funds. I realised at that point that I had already invested in impact before, and I had always had a strong awareness of it; we just didn't call it that back then. As a child, I attended a Waldorf school; my father worked at an anthroposophical institute; and my parents had banked with Triodos for many years. Through Edmond, I also got involved with the 'School for Moral Ambition'. Slowly but surely, I found myself immersed in the impact circuit. 

What does your impact portfolio look like now?

I am invested in five funds with tickets ranging from €100k to €500k: Bold Bets on Science, Pymwymic, Rubio, Carbon Equity (a fund of funds), and E4E (Entrepreneurs for Entrepreneurs) in Africa. I prefer to spread capital over multiple funds. In addition, I've invested directly in 10 enterprises and extended 44 microloans through Kiva. Kiva is an online lending platform where you can choose projects from all over the world. So far, my 44 loans have spanned 6 countries, totaling 13,000 euros.

Why climate?

Climate has a measurable KPI: CO₂. I'm a techno-optimist, love numbers, and I really enjoy a good graph! Many other impact themes are hard or impossible to measure. Climate is complex, but at least there is a benchmark. For example, it inspires me to see how much the price of wind turbines and solar panels has dropped over the past decades.

What are some examples of your direct investments?

A good example is Hydryx, a company that captures methane from landfills and converts it into energy. Everyone talks about CO₂, but methane is just as harmful, being responsible for 20% of global warming. Tackling methane is highly effective: if you can reduce methane leaks to zero, for example, you can earn your investment back within a year. Europe might have reduced landfill volume by 90% in 50 years, but globally, landfills and methane remain major problems. So Hydryx can make a huge impact.

Another example is Jackfruit Finance in Nairobi, a microfinance provider for private schools. In many East African countries, the government can't deliver on its promises of public education, so about 50% of children attend private schools (which typically enroll 100-300 students). These schools, especially the good ones, often can't get affordable local loans and face interest rates of up to 50%! Jackfruit Finance provides loans of 2-10K USD, which are repaid through the school fees.

How would you describe your investment style?

Scalability is important to me. It has to be able to become big and have the potential to really gain traction. With Jackfruit Finance, for example, we've helped 600 schools in three years! Data and measurability are also essential to me. I need to be able to understand the metrics of something.

What are your sources of inspiration?

I like the podcast Redefining Energy and the work of Hannah Ritchie, a Scottish data scientist and deputy editor at Our World in Data, who wrote Not the End of the World.

What advice would you give other impact investors?

Adjust your expectations. Divide your money into imaginary wallets so you know which part is meant for investing and which part for donating. I have a very calm financial life because structuring it this way has allowed me to maintain a certain emotional distance from my impact returns. 
I also think it's good to have friends who share your interests in donating and impact investing; it helps to keep you agile.

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