NCX

About NCX

NCX, initially established as SilviaTerra in 2010, operates as a marketplace for natural capital, connecting landowners with corporations aiming to achieve net-zero emissions. The company was founded by Zack Parisa and Max Nova, who met while studying at Yale University. Parisa, a forester and biometrician by training, and Nova, an engineer, combined their expertise to address the challenge of valuing and monetizing the natural capital of forests. Their journey began by commercializing a satellite-based forest measurement technology Parisa developed, which laid the groundwork for the company's data-driven approach. In 2021, the company rebranded to NCX, an acronym for Natural Capital Exchange, to better reflect its core business.

The firm has secured significant funding, totaling $74.4 million over three rounds, including a $50 million Series B in March 2022, with investors like Energize Capital, Microsoft, Union Square Ventures, and Marc Benioff's TIME Ventures. The business model centers on generating revenue through transaction fees, taking a percentage of the purchase price for carbon credits and other environmental assets traded on its platform. Its clients are primarily corporations seeking to offset their carbon footprint and landowners of all sizes, from large institutions to small family forests, who were previously excluded from carbon markets due to high costs and complexity.

At the core of NCX's service is its proprietary technology, "Basemap." This high-resolution forest inventory maps every acre of forest in the contiguous United States, detailing the species, size, and carbon content of an estimated 92 billion trees. Leveraging satellite imagery, AI, and remote sensing, Basemap provides precise assessments of timber and carbon value. Initially, NCX focused on a one-year harvest deferral program, paying landowners to delay timber harvesting. However, due to challenges with buyer demand for short-term credits and the certification process, the company has since broadened its scope. The platform now allows landowners to explore and enroll in a variety of programs beyond carbon, including opportunities related to water, soil, wildlife, and solar, effectively serving as a comprehensive marketplace for natural capital.