CarbonPool

CarbonPool is a Zurich-based specialty insurance carrier focused exclusively on carbon credit risks, serving corporate buyers and developers of carbon removal projects. Founded in 2023 by former Allianz executives, the company addresses a gap in the voluntary carbon markets: ensuring that buyers of carbon credits receive the sequestration they paid for, even when underlying projects suffer reversal events, underperformance, or business disruptions.

CarbonPool's underwriting relies on proprietary risk models developed by a team of climate scientists, weather modelers, and geographers. Each exposure receives bespoke assessment combining geospatial analysis with carbon project data. The company uses an in-kind claims model -- paying valid claims in equivalent high-quality carbon credits rather than cash -- aligning insurer incentives with the carbon market by investing collected premiums into carbon removal projects that fund future payouts.

CarbonPool raised CHF 10.5M (approximately USD 12M / EUR 11.2M) in a seed round closed in January 2024, co-led by Heartcore Capital and Vorwerk Ventures, with participation from HCS Capital, Revent Ventures, and former Allianz board members Axel Theis and Christof Mascher. The company is preparing an application for a Swiss regulated (re)insurance license and has launched pilot products aligned with Verra's VCS v5 standard.