Press Release: Planet2050 recognized as "Green Innovator of the Year 2025"

Climate FinTech Pioneer Democratizes Climate Protection: Private Investors Become Climate Shareholders in the Growing CO₂ Market through Planned Public Listing.

Berlin, 20.11.2025

The Climate FinTech company Planet2050 from Berlin has been honored with the prestigious "Green Innovator of the Year 2025" award. The jury of the largest public prize in the German-speaking economy recognized the company as outstanding in the field of sustainable innovations. Planet2050 sets new standards in the CO₂ market by combining climate protection with technology, impact transparency, and financial innovation. 

The start-up thus bridges the gap between climate protection and capital. Lucas Zaehringer, CEO of Planet2050, said at the award ceremony in Berlin: “The 'Green Innovator of the Year 2025' award strengthens us in our mission to completely rethink climate protection.”

In order to limit global warming to well below 1.5 degrees Celsius in accordance with the Paris Climate Agreement, the world needs to remove around ten gigatons of CO₂ per year until 2050. Currently we only manage two gigatons. 

Financing is the Key to Achieving Climate Goals

“We must drastically reduce this enormous CO₂ removal gap. This is only possible with significantly more capital. It is precisely this vital capital that we provide to carbon project developers,” explains Zaehringer.

In return, Planet2050 secures the audited CO₂ certificates – the new asset class in the fight against global warming. “But attention: not the availability alone, but also the quality of the certificates is crucial.

Only strictly certified projects are truly valuable for companies and governments to credibly neutralize their unavoidable residual emissions on their way to‘Net Zero’.”

For quality assurance, Planet2050 selects the CO₂ projects to be financed according to strict integrity criteria. Preferred methods for CO₂ reduction or avoidance include nature-based solutions such as reforestation, but also technological methods based on mineralization, biomass pyrolysis, or bioenergy with CO₂ Capture and Storage (CCS). These have the additional advantage of being precisely measurable and able to store CO₂ for thousands of years. 

Through the forthcoming public listing of Planet2050 next year, investors will for the first time have the opportunity to become active as both climate investors, getting financial returns while doing something good for the Planet.

The Jury of the "Green Innovator of the Year 2025" particularly highlighted:

• The combination of climate finance, technology, and impact

• The complete transparency and traceability of CO₂ removal

• The involvement of a broad public as shareholders and part of a strong community

• The clear and scalable platform logic

The prize is awarded by ‘Die Deutsche Wirtschaft’ (DDW). 

Press Contact Planet2050

Renate Christ, renate.christ@planet2050.earth, +49 176 30 17 32 67

Gesine Hellerich, gesine.hellerich@planet2050.earth