Alberts Impact Ventures is thrilled to announce the newest addition to our team: Ben Weinberger. Stepping into the role of investment associate, Ben brings a wealth of experience and expertise to our impact investment endeavours, having previously worked as the investment manager and head of fundraising at investment platform Equitise. Prior to that, he led the design and delivery of accelerator programs, helping entrepreneurs grow and scale their businesses.
Armed with a Bachelor of Commerce/Bachelor of Laws from Macquarie University and currently pursuing a Master of Applied Finance, Ben’s background positions him perfectly to propel our mission to back pioneering founders and organisations building a vibrant and sustainable future for all. Get to know our newest team member.
What’s the most rewarding aspect of your role?
I am incredibly excited to join the Alberts team. In this role, you are constantly learning. From getting your head around new technologies and industries, through to deep-diving into alternative business and operating models, I’m super inquisitive and love learning, so it’s a great fit!
Impact investing in Australia is still a relatively nascent space, which presents a significant opportunity to drive change and progress. In only a short period of time, the team at Alberts has pioneered this movement, and I look forward to helping it gather momentum by working with the team and all the terrific founders we support to build a better tomorrow.
What ignited your passion for impact investing?
I’ve always been passionate about early-stage venture investing and have spent the last five years or so in the space. However, it was the birth of my first daughter that really got me more interested in impact generally, and the role that it was playing in my personal life. Merging these two interest areas in a job is incredibly fulfilling.
What qualities do you value most in a team?
Transparency and respect. Everyone at Alberts brings their own perspective and opinions to the table, and I appreciate environments where all perspectives are welcome and respected – and the best idea wins.
What trends are you observing in Australia’s impact investing landscape?
In terms of funding, there has been a sharp increase in the capital flowing to climate-focused startups recently, with no signs of this slowing down. This presents tremendous opportunities for climate tech founders, but also, it presents an interesting environment for investors to navigate.
From a technology perspective, the global transition to clean energy is creating secondary innovation and investment opportunities. As an example, the adoption of battery technology is seeing an increased requirement for various minerals such as lithium. This traditionally has had a big environmental impact. The question then becomes how we use technology to mine and source materials such as lithium in a way that reduces this secondary (and potentially forgotten) environmental impact. As an investor, it’s interesting to think about these secondary opportunities that may be less apparent, but present tremendous opportunities.
Which companies within the Alberts Impact Ventures portfolio are addressing issues or pioneering solutions that truly captivate you, and what sets them apart in your eyes?
Each company in the AIV portfolio is solving a difficult, but impactful, problem. Companies like Mindset Health, Samphire Neuroscience and Baymatob are using novel and non-invasive solutions to address chronic and preventative health conditions faced by so many. It’s exciting to watch these products come to market, particularly in areas such as women’s health which has been severely underserved in terms of research and investment. There is no shortage of unmet health needs when it comes to women’s healthcare, so it’s exciting to be able to play a small part in helping enable Femtech innovators to bring their solutions to market.
Then, there are these big, hairy audacious environmental issues such as plastic waste, food security and the clean energy transition. Companies like Amber, Uluu, Bygen, RapidAIM and MGA Thermal are all playing their part here. It’s great to see Alberts backing several Deep-Tech startups.
As a husband, and father of two young children, how do you balance career and family life?
Putting the phone away and muting notifications from apps as much as possible helps to ensure that I’m in the moment when I’m with my wife and my kids, Rayne and Sayah. (And I can’t forget our five-year-old Italian greyhound, Whiskey!).
How can we find you unwinding or having fun on the weekends?
I am getting back into long-distance running after taking a bit of a break over the last year. Other than that, I love being by the ocean.
As a child, what did you dream to be when you grew up?
A professional soccer player.
Top three life highlights?
It sounds cliché, but it would have to be the birth of my two daughters and marrying my wife, Montanna.
What’s a recent topic or subject that’s captivated your attention?
I finished recently a book called The Price of Time which tracks the history of interest and interest rates and its impact on economic and financial crises, challenging our mainstream understanding. Sounds incredibly boring, but I found it super interesting given the current economic environment we find ourselves in locally and globally.
Beyond impact investing, do you have any unique or unexpected talents?
No, but my wife once dared me to do a handstand on a paddleboard thinking I had no chance and would make a fool of myself. I now have photographic evidence that I can in fact (or rather, I could a few years back) do a handstand on a stand-up paddleboard.
