Mombak, the Startup of the Former Nubank CFO that wants to Reverse Deforestation
Gabriel Haddad Silva spent nearly five years as chief financial officer at Nubank, which he left in July 2020. Once he left fintech, the first thing he did was go to newspapers selling newspapers near his home and buy whatever he could find from magazines specializing in fintech. climate change. “I’ve spent almost a year reading everything I can find on this subject,” Gabriel told Brazil Journal. “I wanted to make something of myself that has an effect that would generate something positive for society.”
From this indulgence, Mombak, an emerging company that wants to solve the problem of climate change, was born by reviving degraded areas and generating carbon assets with it. Gabriel created the start-up with Peter Fernandez, former CEO of 99, who had just spent two years visiting countries in Africa and a Buddhist monastery in France.
Unlike most carbon credit platforms, Mombak was born vertically: carbon balances will create review projects and then sell the balances directly to companies that want to offset their emissions. Gabriel explains that re-enactment is today the primary tool for capturing carbon from the atmosphere, where biomass trees accumulate above and below the earth; 50% of biomass is carbon.
Gabriel said, “Basically you take carbon from the atmosphere, turn it into living mass, and store that carbon inside the forest,” Gabriel said. Around the world, there are more “technical” initiatives to remove carbon from the atmosphere, such as the Climate Works and the Attack on the Gates Bill. Climate works adopt huge industrial compounds literally absorbing air, separating molecules, taking carbon and injecting it from deep in the earth where it will be stored. (Carbon holding is safer. Eventually, if there is a fire in the forest, all the captured carbon goes straight back into the atmosphere).
The founder said: “But the cost of this model is still very high, and the reduction of embarupments brings other positive external factors, such as the increase in biological diversity in the world”, said the founder.
To fund his vision, Mombak toured last year with three venture funds: Kaszek Ventures, American USV and Byers.
Now he is about to create a new fundraising process to finance the purchase of land in which reintegration will be strengthened.
The idea is to start the Amazon, in the deterioration of pastures in special areas that have the capacity to renew. Mumbak plans to use 60 local species to reinstate these lands and turn them into permanent protected areas.
The conversion of the emerging company into a vertical situation goes beyond the borders of the field. Mumbak plans to start her own nursery, as she will raise 60 species of local plants and trees. (It sounds simple, but a nursery of this size requires an investment of around 30 million Brazilian riyals).
To measure the number of carbon assets created, the startup will periodically measure the biomass accumulated in the forests.
Although he has not yet started obtaining credits, Mumbak has already spoken with companies interested in signing long-term contracts. According to Gabriel, the startup already has four understanding notes signed with major corporations for 10-year credit purchase agreements.
Mombak is positioning itself in a market that is expected to witness an increase in demand in the coming years. It is estimated that by 2050, the world will have to offset 10 billion tons of carbon each year.
This request was submitted because many companies have already announced carbon removal targets. The problem is how to find this credit. Most of the emerging innovations are placed as mediators, like brokers, but that doesn’t solve the spectacle problem, which is the big hurdle. “
