Paris, March 18, 2025. Apave Group is an international group with over 150 years of history, specialized in managing technical, environmental, human, and digital risks. With 17,500 employees, the group generated €1.4 billion in revenue in 2024. Today, Apave announces the acquisition of Aktio, an Asterion portfolio company since late 2021.

Founded in 2020, the startup quickly established itself as a key player in carbon accounting, serving over 500 organizations and consulting firms through a combined software and advisory approach. Aktio now has around forty experts dedicated to measuring and managing greenhouse gas emissions.

Thanks to the SaaS platform developed by Aktio, clients can:

Measure their carbon footprint Define low-carbon trajectories (e.g., SBTi) Implement decarbonization plans Ensure regulatory compliance (e.g., CSRD) Communicate and train on the low-carbon transition

With this merger, Apave positions itself as a leader in sustainability consulting, offering concrete and operational services, along with a cutting-edge and accessible ESG software solution.

Above all, integrated within the Apave group, the Aktio team now benefits from a tremendous window of opportunity to maximize its impact and deploy its solution across an ever-growing number of companies facing climate risk—regardless of regulatory shifts or political U-turns.

No one explains it better than Laurent Barbezieux, Alex Huyn, and Thibault Faninger, Aktio's three co-founders: "Aktio was launched in 2020 to give all organizations the means to take concrete, collective action to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions. At a time when climate change risks and consequences are intensifying, democratizing the low-carbon transition as quickly as possible has never been more critical. Joining Apave, a leading player in environmental consulting and auditing, represents an exceptional acceleration opportunity for Aktio—enabling us to equip, train, and support the carbon accountants of tomorrow."

Incidentally, Apave's acquisition of Aktio marks Asterion Ventures' very first exit, having invested in the company back in 2021. "There was a real buzz around carbon accounting software at the time, and among all those emerging players, Aktio truly stood out to us," recalls Stéphane Bourbier, founding partner at Asterion. Why? "We saw a team of deeply committed experts who weren't overselling some magic automated platform—instead, they understood the real value of advisory support in building credible low-carbon trajectories. Apave's acquisition proves they were right all along," Stéphane adds.

A view shared by Charles-Henry Choël, also a partner at Asterion, who served on Aktio's board: "I'm very pleased to see Aktio join the Apave group: our core mission is to support the growth of promising startups and help de-risk them, and I know we're leaving them in good hands today. Over several months, we worked with the team on two parallel scenarios: a new funding round or an acquisition. Ultimately, the acquisition by Apave—which brings in the Aktio team and will invest in their platform—emerged as the clear choice, especially given the market consolidation underway. This kind of alignment wouldn't have come together so quickly otherwise."

About Apave Group

Apave is an international group with over 150 years of history, specializing in the management of technical, human, environmental, and digital risks. An independent company with €1.4 billion in revenue in 2024, Apave today has 17,500 employees, 130 branches in France, 170 training centers in France and abroad, and more than 20 testing or equipment certification centers. Apave operates internationally in nearly 60 countries. Through inspection, certification, technical training, testing & measurement, and consulting services, Apave supports private and public organizations in France and around the world—nearly 500,000 clients already trust the company. More information at www.apave.com.

About Aktio

Founded in 2020 and backed by Asterion Ventures and 50 Partners Impact, Aktio is a leading player in greenhouse gas emissions measurement and management. The company develops a SaaS platform and supports organizations in their decarbonization strategy. Its software complies with the main carbon accounting methodological standards (Bilan Carbone®, GHG Protocol, ISO 14064, SBTi). Used by over 500 companies and local authorities, along with a network of consulting partners, Aktio manages 30 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent—nearly 10% of total annual emissions in France. More information at www.aktio.cc