Yahoo Finance Harry Potter star’s surprise $23,000,000 move
Emma Watson has backed a biodegradable plastics company, making her the first Harry Potter star to make the transition into angel investing.
An angel investor is a high-net-worth individual who provides backing for startups or entrepreneurs early on in the company’s growth.
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Watson, who came to fame playing Hermione Granger in the juggernaut franchise, is part of a group of investors funnelling £12.5 million (AU$23.1 million) into FabricNano.
The London-based company has developed a method to make plastics without using fossil fuels and chemicals, and without costing any more.
Watson is joined by Twitter cofounder Biz Stone and the former chief executive of Bayer, Alexander Moscho, in investing in the early stage company.
It expects to be able to launch its products on the market in between 12 and 18 months.
Watson, who has a reported net worth of US $80 million (AU$107 million), has been vocal about environmental issues since her days in the Harry Potter franchise.
In 2009, she launched an ethical fashion range with People Tree, and used her press tour for 2017 film Beauty and the Beast to highlight sustainable fashion, often wearing garments made from offcuts.
She’s also far from the first celebrity to take a turn into venture capital.
Jay Z, through Marcy Venture Partners, was an early investor in Uber and Impossible Foods, while Bono was an early investor in Facebook.
Will Smith invests in Elon Musk’s tunnel digging startup, The Boring Company, and Serena Williams also invests in Impossible Foods and MasterClass through Serena Ventures.
Justin Bieber invests in companies including Spotify, while Ashton Kutcher holds early investments in Houzz, Uber and Airbnb.
Tyra Williams is a major investor in female-owned digital media company TheSkimm, while Priyanka Chopra invests in Bumble.
Jessica Alba, one of Hollywood’s most successful investors and businesswomen through her Honest Co. company, also invests in Headspace.
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