M&A: Workiva Acquires Sustain.Life for $100M, Launches Carbon Accounting Software

Workiva has acquired carbon accounting software startup Sustain.Life for $100 million, and the acquired software has been rebranded as Workiva Carbon.

The software is designed to help customers fulfill key compliance mandates such as CSRD from the European Union, pending SEC mandates, and emerging laws in California, among other example regulations, Workiva said.

This is M&A deal number 240 that Sustainable Tech Partner has covered so far in 2024. See all M&A deals involving sustainability, climate tech and green IT services listed here.

Workiva Acquires Sustain.Life: Software Business Backgrounds

Sustain.Life, founded in 2021, is based in Jersey City, New Jersey. The company's software makes it "easier and more affordable to measure, manage and report carbon emissions and environmental impact," Sustain.Life asserts. The company raised $16 million in seed funding in February 2023. Co-founder Mike Hanrahan and Tapestry VC led that round, with participation from Active Impact Investments, Kompas, Agya Ventures and Seyen Capital. Sustain.Life had 55 employees listed on LinkedIn as of June 2024.

Workiva, founded in 2008, is based in Ames, Iowa. The company develops cloud-based software for connecting and reporting data across finance, accounting, risk, compliance and more. Workiva revenue was $176 million in Q1 of 2024, up 17% from Q1 of 2023. GAAP net loss was $12 million, compared to a $46 million net loss in Q1 of 2023.

Workiva, armed with Sustain.Life, launched Workiva Carbon on June 18, 2024. The software, according to the company, will allow customers and partners to support various global climate regulations -- such as the:

• Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD);
• SEC’s climate disclosure rules; and
• California’s Climate Corporate Data Accountability Act (SB 253) and Climate-Related Financial Risk Act (SB 261).

Workiva Acquires Sustain.Life: Executive Perspectives

In a blog about the deal, Sustain.Life CEO and Co-founder Annalee Bloomfield wrote: "This isn't just a new chapter for us; it’s a huge step forward in our mission to empower organizations with the digital tools to measure, manage, and report their emissions."

Added Workiva CEO Julie Iskow: "The launch of Workiva Carbon enhances Workiva’s established and leading ESG platform, positioning us to help businesses advance their sustainability efforts. Now our customers can streamline Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions tracking, set science-based targets, and meet stakeholder demands amidst the changing investor and regulatory landscape. Bringing these carbon capabilities into our platform highlights our unwavering commitment to providing our customers a comprehensive solution for Financial reporting, ESG, and GRC.”

Workiva Carbon Partner Strategy: Multi-Tenant MSP Support?

Workiva's partner strategy includes MSPs; consulting and advisory partners; technology partners; and design partners. Among our key questions: We're checking to see if Workiva Carbon is multi-tenant for MSPs, which typically require such capabilities to manage multiple customers from a single dashboard.

Meanwhile, Sustain.Life has partnerships with such companies as accounting firm Baker Tilly; MHP, a Porsche Company; and Planet6. We're checking to see those relationships will move forward under the Workiva Carbon banner.

Carbon Accounting Software: Market Growth Forecast, Potential Competition

Workiva Carbon targets a rapidly growing market opportunity. Indeed, the global carbon accounting software market will reach $100.84 billion in 2032, up from $18.52 billion in 2024, according to Fortune Business Insights. That's a 23.6% compound annual growth rate, the market research firm said.

Still, that anticipated growth could trigger intense market competition. Among the key moves to note:

• April 2024: Multiple startups -- such as BeCause, Coolset, Cozero, and Sumday -- touted various SaaS-based carbon accounting services.
• March 2024: Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) invested in Greenly, which develops carbon accounting software for small and midsize businesses. HPE sees Greenly's software as an opportunity to assist enterprise customers with sustainable IT infrastructure initiatives.
• March 2024: Green Project Technologies, a carbon accounting platform for small businesses, is available via Microsoft AppSource, the two companies said.
• February 2024: Amazon Web Services and Sage Earth announced an SMB carbon accounting software partnership. Sage, in particular, is convinced that SMB financial accountants will become carbon accountants, according to George Sandilands, VP of Sage Earth.
• August 2023: Persefoni raised $50 million in Series C-1 funding, and the climate accounting software firm has added more generative AI capabilities to its platform. Persefoni's business valuation was not disclosed.

Circle the Date: So what's next? We're watching for more updates at the Workiva Amplify 2024 conference, which is scheduled for September 9-11 in December, Colorado. The customer and partner event is designed for accounting, finance, ESG and GRC professionals.