What Swiss Climate Foundation does

Swiss Climate Foundation (legal name: Klimastiftung Schweiz; French: Fondation Suisse pour le Climat) is a Swiss non-profit foundation established in 2008 and headquartered in Zurich. It is a federally supervised (Bundesaufsicht) voluntary initiative that channels CO2 levy redistribution from approximately 32 partner companies — predominantly large Swiss and Liechtenstein financial institutions and insurers including Baloise, Swiss Re, Allianz, Swiss Life, Vontobel, LGT, and Raiffeisen — into non-dilutive grant funding for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Switzerland and Liechtenstein developing climate-friendly products and technologies. The foundation's core offering is its grant program, supplemented by ecosystem activities such as the inaugural Pitch & Networking Event co-organized with SICTIC at Climate Week Zurich.

Grants are disbursed through a direct-application process via the foundation's trilingual website (klimastiftung.ch), with applications reviewed under a structured evaluation process. Since inception, the foundation has distributed over CHF 43 million in funding, of which more than CHF 23 million has supported 220+ innovation projects across diverse climate-tech categories including sustainable packaging, biochar concrete, CO2 mineralization, renewable energy, energy storage, and industrial ultrasonic inspection. The annual grant budget is approximately CHF 3 million. The foundation operates with a small staff (1-10 employees) led by CEO Vincent Eckert and Vice President Ursula Finsterwald (Head of Group Sustainability Management at LGT).

The foundation's business model is a pass-through donation-and-grant mechanism: partner companies voluntarily redirect their CO2 levy redistribution (from the Swiss federal CO2 tax on fossil fuels) to the foundation, which then reallocates nearly all funds as non-dilutive grants to SMEs. It is positioned as a bridge between the Friends/Family funding stage and traditional VC capital, targeting climate innovation projects before they are VC-ready; the foundation reports that 23% of supported SMEs would not have realized their project without the grant and 41% would have executed on significantly delayed or reduced scope.

Name

Swiss Climate Foundation

Legal name

Klimastiftung Schweiz

Website

https://klimastiftung.ch

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Swiss non-profit foundation that redistributes voluntary CO2 levy donations from 32 financial/insurance partner firms into non-dilutive grant funding for climate-tech SMEs in Switzerland and Liechtenstein, disbursing ~CHF 3 million annually.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Climate Grant Funding

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211)

akta.pro primary industry

Environmental & Climate Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAM)

akta.pro secondary industries

Corporate Foundations & CSR Grantmaking (BPAGAKAC), Private Foundations (BPAGAKAA), Research & Science Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAI)

Keywords

• Climate grant funding
• SME innovation financing
• Non-dilutive climate capital
• Decarbonization grant programs
• Climate tech seed funding

Headquarters

HQ city

Zürich

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. CO2 Levy Redistribution Donations: Partner companies (large financial institutions and insurance companies) voluntarily donate their CO2 levy redistribution (from the Swiss CO2 tax on fossil fuels) to the foundation. The foundation uses these funds to provide grants to SMEs for climate innovation projects.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Swiss Climate Foundation is a non-profit foundation that provides non-dilutive grant funding (Anstossfinanzierung) to small and medium-sized enterprises in Switzerland and Liechtenstein for the development and scaling of innovative, climate-friendly products and technologies. Grants are sourced from voluntary CO2 levy redistribution donations made by approximately 32 partner companies, primarily financial institutions and insurers, and are distributed through structured funding rounds to applicants via the foundation's website.

Product overview

Swiss Climate Foundation (Klimastiftung Schweiz / Fondation Suisse pour le Climat) is a non-profit foundation that does not develop or sell its own commercial products. Instead, it provides grant funding and support to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Switzerland and Liechtenstein for the development and scaling of innovative, climate-friendly products and technologies. The foundation's core 'offering' is its funding programs, which provide financial support to early-stage climate innovation projects. Funded projects span diverse climate tech areas including sustainable packaging, carbon-negative construction materials, carbon mineralization, renewable energy, robotics for infrastructure inspection, and industrial process optimization. The foundation also organizes networking events such as its inaugural Pitch & Networking Event at Climate Week Zurich 2026, connecting funded SMEs with investors and ecosystem partners. Its primary public-facing platform is its website at klimastiftung.ch, which serves informational purposes and hosts the grant application process.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Climate Innovation Grant Funding Non-dilutive grant funding (Anstossfinanzierung) for Swiss and Liechtenstein SMEs developing innovative, climate-friendly products and technologies, awarded through structured funding rounds via the foundation's website application process.
• Pitch & Networking Event (Climate Week Zurich) Networking event co-organized with SICTIC at Climate Week Zurich, connecting funded climate tech SMEs with business angel investors and ecosystem partners.

Quantifiable outcome

• 23% of supported SMEs would not have realized their innovation project without foundation support; 41% would have achieved significantly delayed or reduced scope

Named customers9 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• SICTICcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Swiss ICT Corporate Club - leading business angel network in Switzerland. Co-organizes pitch and networking events with the foundation at Climate Week Zurich.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Innosuisse: Swiss federal innovation promotion agency that funds and accelerates innovative projects from Swiss SMEs and startups, including clean-tech and climate-tech ventures. Directly comparable as a primary Swiss public innovation funder operating in overlapping applicant pools with the Swiss Climate Foundation.
• Gebert Rüf Stiftung: Swiss science- and innovation-oriented foundation that provides seed funding to early-stage projects with social or technological impact. Closely comparable as a Switzerland-based grantmaking foundation supporting innovative SMEs before commercial scale.
• Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt (DBU): Germany's largest environmental foundation, funding environmental innovation and SME projects across Germany with multi-million-EUR grant budgets. Closely comparable model of a federally-supervised national foundation channeling grants to climate and environmental innovation.

Broad incumbents

• VELUX FONDEN: Danish philanthropic foundation funding sustainability, climate, and built-environment research and innovation. Comparable as a European corporate-affiliated foundation targeting climate and sustainability innovation, though with a different geographic focus and broader thematic scope.
• European Climate Foundation: Major philanthropic foundation that funds climate policy, advocacy, and clean-tech deployment across Europe. Comparable as a climate-focused grantmaker but operates at continental scale and broader mandate (policy + projects), whereas the Swiss Climate Foundation is regionally focused on SME product innovation.
• IKEA Foundation: Philanthropic foundation funding climate action, renewable energy, and sustainable livelihoods globally. Comparable as a large corporate-affiliated climate funder, though at multi-hundred-million-EUR scale and with a global mandate rather than Switzerland/Liechtenstein SME focus.
• Breakthrough Energy Foundation: Bill Gates–backed climate-tech funding entity supporting breakthrough climate technologies globally. Comparable in mission (funding climate innovation) but operates at vastly larger scale via both philanthropic grants and venture vehicles, contrasting with the Swiss foundation's regional, pre-seed grant focus.

Emerging players

• Pure Leapfrog: Charity focused on accelerating the deployment of clean-energy technologies and supporting clean-tech entrepreneurs. Comparable as a grantmaking/funding organization for early-stage climate ventures, though primarily UK- and developing-economy oriented.
• EIT Climate-KIC: EU-backed climate innovation community and accelerator running programs and grants across Europe. Comparable in supporting early-stage climate ventures, but primarily EU-focused with an accelerator/services overlay rather than pure SME grantmaking.

Regional players

• Stiftung KlimaWirtschaft: German foundation of leading companies committed to climate-neutral business practices, supporting corporate climate innovation. Comparable as a corporate-funded climate foundation, but Germany-based and oriented toward large established companies rather than SMEs.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCi1Jf6oisNY6_Tig-xN3BdA/videos
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/swiss-climate-foundation
• Xx.com/KlimastiftungCH

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments11 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Swiss Climate Foundation