Why I Started Sif Capital Advisors

Welcome to 2020! Ready for the new decade?

I launched Sif Capital Advisors in the middle of 2019 as I was beginning to transition away from Sparkfund, a Series B energy efficiency management startup, where I had been running capital markets and financial infrastructure. I joined Sparkfund in 2016 while they were a Series A company to help them figure out their financial strategy, and after 3 years of problem-solving and growth, I was ready for a new early-stage opportunity in the renewable energy sector.

Making the move to hang a shingle versus going to another startup or back to an investment bank was not a random decision. There were many reasons, both professional and personal, that supported this choice, but I wanted to highlight three in particular:

1. I love working on the edge of change. The energy industry is in the middle of necessary and seismic change, and innovation and growth are necessary for all of us to have a stable energy future. The investment in new renewable energy capacity needed in this industry is predicted to be upwards of $22+ trillion in the next 30 years! I can’t think of a better industry to be in right now, can you?
2. I like tackling new challenges. In the last 10 years, I’ve changed jobs seven times, and only one of those was an internal move. I was on a phone call with a client who gave me this observation: “Cassandra, you’re a builder. You’re quick to see the framework of things, you can help someone construct something out of it and leave them the plans to do it again, and then you’re onto the next thing.” Part of career maturity is recognizing your strengths, maximizing those things and mitigating everything else. I’ve fully embraced my strength of being a builder, and my comfort in always being the new kid in school; I get energy from meeting new people and building relationships that outlast the jobs from where they started.
3. I can help. Startups and small companies always have amazing vision, lots of drive, and the ability to execute on a shoestring. Where they struggle is at that critical point where they have a commercial product, they’ve got their first customers and have revenue (and it’s growing!) but now they need consistent, reliable access to capital and that means partnering with larger financial institutions who speak a very different language. Also, those larger financial institutions? They also need help, too, because they want to deploy capital, but they need to do it in a way that matches their business concerns, risks, and regulations — and that’s where I come in, because I’ve been on both sides of it, and I enjoy bringing all of these parties together to the same dance.

Sif Capital Advisors is 100% focused on helping Series A and Series B renewable energy and cleantech startups solve their debt capital and project finance needs. Access to capital is essential for a growing company. Access to the right capital can be the difference between being a company that had a great idea that started off well, but didn’t go anywhere, or a great idea that fundamentally changes how we access and utilize energy sources and technology in ways that will lead to the sustainable energy future that we all need. Sif Capital was formed to help companies find the right capital for their business.

That’s it: that’s why we’re here and that’s the pitch.

• Are you a Series A or Series B renewable energy or cleantech startup?
• Do you need to debt capital / project finance to grow your business?

If so, call me or my business partner Rob Parker (who has been in this industry for 15+ years). Why? Because I started Sif Capital Advisors to help you succeed.

Originally published on LinkedIn on 3 January 2020.