Green venture capital lures wealthy clients | Reuters.it

"Millionaires are piling seed capital into young firms developing green technologies, seeking better control over what happens to money they invest to help improve the environment.
Green venture capital -- a nascent corner of the growing market for socially responsible investments -- is flowing from multimillionaires rather than from strictly controlled institutional investors.
'Wealthy private clients face different rules. They can ask themselves: 'What is it that I really want to change in the world with the help of my money?',' said Wolfgang Hafenmayer at Munich-based BonVenture Management.
The tiny fund manager is exclusively financed by individual investors, putting their money into companies in German-speaking countries that help protect the environment or support socially weaker groups.
Often, the start-up companies it selects involve BonVenture's clients in their decisions, benefiting from the fact many of them are entrepreneurs.
In Europe, some 1.25 billion euros (850 million pounds) was raised for socially responsible venture capital as of 2006, benefiting areas such as pesticide-free insect control, hybrid cars and special schools for children."