# Enduring Planet Financial Model Climate-exclusive revenue-based financing (RBF) platform providing entrepreneur-friendly debt capital to climate-tech startups and SMBs, underwritten by ML/AI automation. - Canonical: https://finamodel.com/startups/enduring-planet - Excel download: https://finamodel.com/startup-models/enduring-planet.xlsx - Category: Fintech - Model type: Marketplace / GMV - Funding round: Seed - Funding: $2M - Founded: 2022 - Geography: US-based companies only for first 12–18 months (USD-denominated deals); could include companies operating in European markets [DECK slide 24]. - Customer: B2B ## About the company Enduring Planet provides climate-focused revenue-based financing to climate-tech startups and SMBs. Rather than taking equity or requiring fixed debt payments, it advances capital that is repaid as an agreed share of a borrower’s revenue. The platform combines automated underwriting with a specialty-finance structure: capital is deployed through SPVs that can use institutional debt. Its climate-only mandate gives the business a focused sourcing and underwriting identity within alternative financing. The model needs separate GP and investment-vehicle views. Forecast originations, average investment size, revenue-share yield, repayment speed, losses, and a 1% origination fee; then model SPV leverage, cost of capital, management costs, and cash available for new deployments. ## What's included - 5-year monthly revenue build with stage-appropriate growth assumptions - Full P&L, headcount plan, and operating-expense schedule - Cash-flow statement, runway, and burn-rate tracking - Valuation via exit multiple with a DCF cross-check - Returns analysis with MOIC and IRR - Unit economics including CAC, LTV, payback, and cohort retention ## Product & value proposition - First product: Enduring Planet RBF - invests $100K–$2M in exchange for 2–10% top-line revenue share over a 1–3 year term. - No personal guarantee, no collateral, no personal credit check. - 1% origination fee. - ML/AI-driven underwriting using bank accounts, CRM/billing, accounting systems, payment processors, and monthly P&L/BS submissions; automated ACH debit for collections. - Value for entrepreneurs: fast affordable capital, access to VC network, active operational support. - Future products planned: additional financial products for early-stage (pre-revenue) and growth-stage companies; potential ML software licensing to third-party lenders by 2025. ## Market - Venture investments in climate tech: $4.8B (2015) → $15.7B (2020) → $32B YTD (2021). - Corporate net-zero commitments: 5 (2015) → 1,541 (2020), combined revenue $11.4T. - Global carbon market: $272B in 2020, grew 20% YoY. - Global clean energy technologies market: $452.8B projected by 2027. - Carbontech described as "a trillion dollar opportunity". - No explicit TAM/SAM/SOM sizing for the RBF addressable market is provided in the deck. ## Revenue model - Primary revenue: revenue-share repayments from portfolio companies (2–10% of borrower top-line revenue until capital + return is repaid, over 1–3 year terms). - Secondary revenue: 1% origination fee per deal. - Capital structure: equity raised via SAFE/seed round → deployed as equity into SPVs; SPVs lever up with institutional debt → SPVs deploy RBF investments to portfolio companies. - Fund-of-funds / debt intermediary model: EP acts as GP/manager of SPVs, sourcing institutional debt capital to amplify deployment. - Future revenue streams: additional financial products (unspecified) and potential ML underwriting software licensing. ## Traction & metrics - 582 companies sourced (via VC referrals, direct sourcing, website inbound). - 139 companies met. - $5M+ near-term pipeline. - 7 term sheets issued, 3 signed. - 1st deal closed. - ~$2.1M committed to date for the SAFE round. - Investment portfolio target for 2021: ~$500K. - No revenue figures disclosed for current period. - No portfolio company performance data disclosed. ## Unit economics - Revenue share rate: 2–10% of portfolio company top-line revenue. - Deployment size: $100K–$2M per deal. - Term: 1–3 years. - Origination fee: 1%. ## Competition / moat - Competitive landscape: Equity (50%+ effective IRR, medium accessibility), Grants (low accessibility, high complexity), Commercial Debt/LOC (5–15%, medium accessibility, late stage only), Venture Debt (5–25%+, very low accessibility unless major-VC-backed), RBF peers - Pipe, Clearco, Lighter Capital, Capchase (15–40%, 90%+ focused on e-commerce/SaaS, not climate). - Moat claims: climate-exclusive focus (no RBF competitor targets climate sector), ML/AI underwriting automation, VC network relationships (pipeline sourced via climate VCs), equity/inclusion scoring criteria. - Sample VC partners listed: Obvious Ventures, Lowercarbon Capital, Avesta Fund, Pale Blue Dot, Prelude Ventures, VoLo Earth, Elemental Excelerator, Climate Capital, Congruent Ventures. - Prior portfolio of team's past employer (EV) includes Lendable ($160M AUM), SunFunder ($170M AUM), $1B AUM climate fund-of-funds, M-KOPA ($189M raised), Zola Electric ($315M raised), d.light ($217M raised). ## Team & funding ask / use of funds - Co-founder & CEO: Dimitry Gershenson - Operating Partner at EV, Manager at Facebook, MS UC Berkeley. - Co-founder & COO: Erin Davis - Co-founder SIMA, Investment Officer FINCA, MBA/MA American University. - Board: Xavier Helgesen (Co-CEO EV, Co-founder Zola), Olympia De Castro (CIO/CFO Single Family Office, Co-founder CIM), Sieva Kozinsky (Co-CEO EV, GP The MBA Fund). - Funding ask: $2M SAFE. - ~$2.1M already committed from: Climate Capital, Possibilian, PSF, Keiki, CommonSense Fund, SIG, plus individual angels. - Use of funds: - $500K pilot investments (direct RBF deployments) - $500K equity into first SPV (to lever with debt) - $1M operating expenses (wages, marketing, software dev, legal) - Post-SAFE roadmap: $7.5–$10M Seed + $25–$50M debt in 2022; $150M+ debt and $125M portfolio in 2023; $300M+ debt and ~$400M portfolio in 2024; $500M+ debt and $1B portfolio in 2025. --- ## Recommended financial model - **Archetype + why:** RBF fund / specialty finance model - hybrid of a credit fund P&L and a fund-manager operating company model. EP has two interlocking financial entities: (a) the GP/management company (OpCo) earning origination fees and eventually management fees; (b) the SPV vehicles that hold the loan/RBF portfolio and generate interest/revenue-share income. The model must capture both layers. Closest archetype: specialty finance / alternative lending fund model (similar to a BDC or marketplace lending P&L), not a standard SaaS or 3-statement operating model. - **Forecast horizon & granularity:** 5 years (FY1–FY5, aligning with deck's bar chart), annual granularity, with monthly detail for Year 1 (cash runway visibility for the SAFE). FY1 = 2021/2022 operating year post-raise. - **Key drivers & assumptions:** *Portfolio / deployment drivers:* - Starting deployed portfolio: ~$500K (2021); $25M+ (2022); $125M (2023); ~$400M (2024); $1B (2025) - Average deal size: $500K - Deals per year (FY1–FY5): derived from portfolio targets above - Average term: 2 years - Revenue share rate (blended): 6% of portfolio company top-line revenue - Portfolio company average annual revenue growth: 40% - Default / loss rate: 5% annually - Portfolio turnover: ~50% per year *Origination fee revenue:* - 1% of each new deployment - New deployments per year = net portfolio growth + repayments (portfolio churn) *Debt leverage (SPV level):* - Equity-to-debt ratio in SPV: 1:4 - Cost of debt: 8% p.a. - Debt secured: $5M (2021); $25–$50M (2022); $150M+ (2023); $300M+ (2024); $500M+ (2025) *OpCo revenue (management company):* - Origination fees: 1% × new deployments - Management fee (future): 1.5–2% of AUM - Carry / performance fee: not mentioned in deck *Operating expenses (OpCo):* - Year 1 OpEx: $1M - wages, marketing, software dev, legal - Headcount growth: +2–3 hires/year through Year 3 - Average fully-loaded salary: $150K - Tech/software/legal: $200K Year 1 scaling to $500K by Year 3 *Equity & capital structure:* - SAFE raise: $2M; converts at Seed - Seed raise: $7.5–$10M in 2022 - Equity into SPV1: $500K of SAFE proceeds - **Scenarios (Base / Bull / Bear - which variables flex):** - Base: Portfolio targets per deck timeline; 6% revenue share rate; 5% default rate; 1:4 debt leverage. - Bull: Faster portfolio scaling (1.25× deck targets); 8% blended revenue share rate; 3% default rate; 1:5 leverage. - Bear: Portfolio targets slip 6–12 months; 4% revenue share rate; 8% default rate; debt harder to secure (1:3 leverage); OpEx runs higher. - Primary flex variables: deployment pace, blended revenue-share rate, default/loss rate, debt leverage ratio, cost of debt. - **Required sheets / outputs:** 1. **Assumptions** - all drivers centralized with / tags 2. **Portfolio Schedule** - deal-by-deal or cohort model: new deployments, repayments, outstanding portfolio by period, revenue-share income earned, origination fees, defaults 3. **SPV P&L** - gross revenue-share income, interest expense on debt, net SPV income, equity return to EP 4. **OpCo P&L** - origination fee revenue, management fees (Year 3+), OpEx, EBITDA, net income 5. **Consolidated P&L** - combined FY1–FY5 income statement 6. **Cash Flow & Runway** - OpCo cash burn, SAFE/Seed drawdown timing, months of runway 7. **Debt Schedule** - SPV debt draws, interest, covenants (concentration limits per slide 24) 8. **Sensitivity Table** - revenue-share rate vs. default rate; deployment pace vs. leverage ratio 9. **KPI Dashboard** - AUM, # active deals, blended yield, loss rate, origination fee revenue, OpCo burn rate ## Frequently asked questions ### Is the Enduring Planet financial model free? Yes. The Enduring Planet model is a free Excel download with live formulas. ### Can I change the assumptions? Yes. The workbook is editable and its live formulas recalculate when assumptions change.