Forest restoration company Rainforest Builder UK announced the closing of a Series A funding round led by BNP Paribas’ alternatives asset manager BNP Paribas Asset Management Alts (BNPP AM Alts), with proceeds aimed at accelerating its community-oriented ecosystem restoration projects in West Africa.
Founded in 2022, Rainforest Builder restores degraded tropical forests and generates carbon removal credits through large-scale ecosystem restoration projects, with a focus on the Upper Guinean Forest, one of the most degraded forest landscapes in Africa, with 90% cleared. The company currently has four projects in place and has planted more than 1.8 million trees to date.
Alexandre Martin-Min, Head of Natural Capital & Impact Investments at BNPP AM Alts, said:
“West Africa is a region with significant opportunity for natural climate solutions, but reforestation efforts are currently underfunded. We chose to support Rainforest Builder in their mission given the team’s deep operational and scientific expertise in the region and their innovative approach to reforestation. Their approach balances ecological restoration with social and economic benefits, and we believe their projects have the potential to deliver significant biodiversity benefits, jobs, and wider benefits to local communities.”
According to Rainforest Builder, the new funding will support the production of high-quality carbon removal credits through forest restoration activities, accelerate its community-oriented ecosystem restoration work, and further develop its proprietary restoration operating system, which integrates operational and ecological data.
Alongside the equity investment, BNPP AM Alts has committed financing for Rainforest Builder’s Project Colobus, a tropical forest ecosystem restoration project located in the Oti and Volta regions of eastern Ghana. The project aims to restore large areas of degraded land using native tree species grown in company nurseries, while establishing a “seed-to-forest” supply chain that includes seed collection, storage, and planting.
Ed Stephenson, Co-CEO of Rainforest Builder, said:
“We are thrilled to welcome BNPP AM Alts as an investor in Rainforest Builder and Project Colobus. Bringing institutional capital at this scale to ecosystem restoration in West Africa is a pivotal development for our company and the whole sector, demonstrating the value of tropical forests as natural infrastructure. Rainforest Builder’s four projects in Ghana, Sierra Leone, and Guinea have established both operational and commercial traction, and with this investment, we believe we are well positioned for continued growth in existing and new markets.”
BNPP AM Alts said that the investment aligns with UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 15 (Life on Land) and 13 (Climate Action), which aim to restore and conserve natural capital, while mitigating climate change and promoting biodiversity.
