BetterPoints wins added funds to build momentum towards more sustainable travel behaviours

BetterPoints uses technology and data to provide actionable insights that help people adopt more sustainable behaviours in their daily lives. By gamifying the journey and providing insights into how their behaviours are leading to fewer CO2 emissions, the company is able to keep users engaged and committed to long-term behaviour change

The Cass Entrepreneurship Fund has successfully completed the Government’s Future Fund £800,000 matched investment into BetterPoints.

BetterPoints is a specialist behavioural change technology, and will use the funds to help facilitate its transition towards more sustainable mobility and a lower carbon footprint. Says Richard Kirk, CEO of BetterPoints: 'We will use the funding to grow our team in order to capitalise on the momentum towards more sustainable behaviours induced by the coronavirus pandemic and subsequent lockdowns.

'BetterPoints uses technology and data to provide actionable insights that help people adopt more sustainable behaviours in their daily lives. By gamifying the journey and providing insights into how their behaviours are leading to fewer CO2 emissions, the company is able to keep users engaged and committed to long-term behaviour change. In aggregate, this amounts to substantial savings of CO2 emissions and better physical and mental wellbeing for the users. These benefits for the end users are why BetterPoints has a B2B2C model whereby businesses procure our unique technology for their employees.

Cass says: 'BetterPoints adapted well to the coronavirus pandemic by tailoring its platform to the needs of remote workers and the behaviours they can adopt in absence of physical mobility. This proactive approach has yielded strong sales momentum and the Cass Entrepreneurship Fund is excited to back BetterPoints as they continue to capitalise on this momentum.'

Richard Kirk added: 'Positive behaviour change in individual travel modes generates increased physical activity, a shift change in transport and significantly reduces CO2. Healthier lifestyles, improved air quality and a major contribution to climate change ensue. The forward thinking of the CASS Entrepreneurship Fund and the innovation of the Government’s Future Fund Scheme ensure that BetterPoints technology can be developed further, through the Covid-19 pandemic, to accelerate this behaviour change – and produce a rich seam of data – with the public sector and private businesses, in the UK and internationally.'     

Linda Coyle, Investment Manager at the Cass Entrepreneurship Fund said: 'Covid-19 has seen rapid shifts in deeply engrained habits. Similar shifts are required in our behaviour to ensure real change in environmental sustainability. BetterPoints has the platform to encourage and reward this behavioural change and provide valuable behavioural science insights. With a great product, a great team and a timely market opportunity, we are very pleased to back and support BetterPoints and expect to see great progress in the coming months and years.' 

About the Future Fund?The Future Fund will support the UK’s innovative businesses currently affected by Covid-19. These businesses have been unable to access other government business support programmes, such as CBILS, because they are either pre-revenue or pre-profit and typically rely on equity investment. Initially, £250 million was made available by the government for investment through the scheme, to be matched by private investors, with the Treasury making clear the amount could be increased if needed. Due to the popularity of the Fund, more funding is being made available. The fund was developed by the government and delivered by the British Business Bank.