Partner Spotlights
The global blue economy is expected to reach $3 trillion by 2030. As it grows, our ports, coastlines and offshore energy systems are more important than ever. Sustaining this growth requires infrastructure that doesn’t just withstand dynamic ocean environments, but adapts to them.
This need for more resilient coastal infrastructure is creating a generational market opportunity. Today, innovative businesses are proving that by designing materials that encourage marine life to grow and structurally reinforce infrastructure over time, the next era of coastal development can deliver strong financial performance while actively regenerating the ecosystems they inhabit.
At the forefront of this is ECOncrete, a producer of bio-enhancing concrete solutions that strengthen marine infrastructure while regenerating local ecosystems. Their recent $14 million funding round—led by Builders Vision, Barclays Climate Ventures and Monaco’s ReOcean Fund—is a powerful example of this shift happening in real time.
At Builders Vision, we invest across the capital spectrum from market-building philanthropy to early-stage and institutional investments. Our first investment in ECOncrete was made in 2021 through Builders Bridge, an investment portfolio deploying flexible capital to build and scale solutions within our core sectors of food and agriculture, energy and oceans.
When we met the team, they had already built a strong foundation and were proving out their solution across a diverse range of marine infrastructure projects—from coastal developments to ports and large-scale offshore energy infrastructure. We were drawn to their early commercial trajectory and recognized that we could help provide the strategic runway needed to convert that pipeline into true market leadership.
“Major offshore infrastructure projects require partners who understand the realities of building in this space at this scale,” said Ido Sella, CEO and Co-Founder of ECOncrete. “Builders Vision provided that foundational capital at a critical stage in our growth, but their contribution went far beyond investment alone. They brought valuable strategic guidance and deep sector expertise, helping us navigate key moments in our journey. They also played an important role in mobilizing additional capital, using their conviction in our vision to build confidence among other investors. Their support gave us the resources to scale while serving as a powerful validation of both our technology and our path to market.”
Now, we are watching that vision translate into incredible momentum. ECOncrete has hit a massive commercial inflection point and is now widely considered best-in-class in terms of financial performance and commercial adoption. This momentum drove our decision to expand our partnership with this investment.
“As long-standing investors in the blue economy, seeing ECOncrete reach this stage is an exciting milestone, not only for the company, but for the broader sector,” said Cristin Pacifico, Vice President, Investments at Builders Vision. “ECOncrete demonstrates what’s possible when innovative solutions are matched with patient, flexible capital and the time needed to navigate complex markets. Their progress shows that sustainable marine infrastructure is moving beyond proof of concept and into commercial scale. For other investors, it’s a powerful signal that this is a maturing market with real opportunities to generate both environmental impact and business value.”
ECOncrete’s success is a direct result of a technology that works with the ecosystem to build a fundamentally stronger product. They stand out in the market as the only nature-positive concrete solution that fully complies with strict marine construction standards.
When their concrete goes into the water, it creates a “bioprotection layer”—a calcitic layer formed by marine organisms like oysters. This living layer actually increases the strength and durability of the concrete over time by reducing corrosion and chloride penetration.
This reduces long-term maintenance costs for developers. Additionally, because it fosters thriving marine ecosystems, the technology is proven to be a net carbon sink, making their cement carbon-negative. Additionally, ECOncrete provides multiple climate benefits. The concrete mix can be designed to significantly reduce embodied carbon from day one, and the diverse biological communities it supports create an active carbon sink – absorbing carbon over the infrastructure’s full lifespan.
Today, this technology is actively upgrading coastlines across the globe, with successful deployments everywhere from the Port of Rotterdam to Battery Park in New York City and the Port of San Diego. Over the past 18 months alone, ECOncrete has delivered technology for more than 20 projects globally, providing over 90,000 m² of valuable ocean habitat, and achieved a staggering 3.4x growth in revenue.
This success is built on the long-term commitment of Ido and the ECOncrete team. Together, we’ve been able to collaborate on navigating complex policy landscapes and identifying new market opportunities. Whether we are engaging with Ido and his Board of Directors or highlighting their work on the global stage at New York Climate Week in 2025, our goal is always to support and amplify their vision.
This momentum is exactly what accelerates markets. At Builders Vision, we believe patient capital is necessary to mature these sectors to the point where they are ready for traditional institutional investment. The participation of investors like Barclays Climate Ventures, BDT & MSD Partners, DCP, Open Road Impact and Monaco’s ReOcean Fund highlights this maturation. These investors maintain rigorous standards and require strict growth metrics and proven forward sales trajectories to even consider an investment.
“Our investment in ECOncrete is rooted in their exceptional commercial viability and the massive opportunity within the blue economy,” said Jeremy Genin from the ReOcean Fund. “They have not only met our rigorous impact due diligence but have also demonstrated a remarkable forward sales pipeline that proves nature-positive infrastructure is ready for institutional scale.”
The success of ECOncrete’s Series C is a signal for the entire blue economy. As they grow on a commercial scale and expand their global footprint, Builders Vision is honored to continue our journey with the ECOncrete team. We are incredibly excited to see this momentum build across the rest of our oceans portfolio, and we encourage other investors to learn more. The opportunity is immense, and we’re just getting started.