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Circulate Capital
Rob Kaplan's Circulate Capital deploys over $100M across Asia's waste infrastructure to stop ocean plastic, backing Banyan Nation and 15+ firms since 2018.
Circulate Capital
Rob Kaplan established Circulate Capital in 2018 after leading sustainability initiatives at Closed Loop Partners, structuring the firm to fill the missing middle in Asian waste-infrastructure financing. Backed by multinational corporations including PepsiCo, Procter & Gamble, Dow, Danone, and Unilever, the firm targets the systemic bottleneck where informal collection networks meet formal recycling capacity in South and Southeast Asia. Circulate Capital operates dedicated vehicles including the Circulate Capital Ocean Fund and a climate-tech fund aimed at next-generation materials. The strategy spans equity and debt, focusing on waste collection, sorting, and advanced recycling infrastructure. Confirmed portfolio companies include India's largest PET recycler, Banyan Nation, Indonesian reverse-logistics platform Tridi Oasis, and Thailand's advanced recycler, Union J. Plus. The firm sources directly through local operating partners and industry networks across India, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, and the Philippines. In June 2024, Circulate Capital announced a successful capital raise with further commitments from Chevron Phillips Chemical, bringing total strategy commitments closer to an expanded platform supporting advanced plastic recycling technologies (per the firm's official communications, 2024). The Singapore-headquartered firm maintains regional offices in India and investment origination hubs across Southeast Asia, operating alongside its non-profit partner, The Circulate Initiative, which provides research and ecosystem development separate from the investment entity. The firm's structural differentiator lies in its blended-capital model tailored specifically to Asia's fragmented waste economy. Rather than a generalist impact mandate, Circulate Capital deploys flexible capital across early-stage infrastructure projects that traditional infrastructure funds and venture capital consistently bypass, de-risking investments that unlock circular supply chains for its corporate limited partners.
General information
Firm type
Asset Manager
Year founded
2018
AUM
Undisclosed
Location
Region
Asia
Country
Singapore
City
Singapore
Corporate office
Singapore
Principals
Rob Kaplan
Founder and CEO
Ellen Martin
Chief Impact Officer
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Who runs investment decisions at Circulate Capital?
Founder and CEO Rob Kaplan leads the investment committee, drawing on his prior experience at Closed Loop Partners and a career in structured finance. The investment team operates from Singapore with regional directors in India and Southeast Asia who originate and manage local deals. The firm uses a formal impact measurement framework overseen by Chief Impact Officer Ellen Martin.
How does Circulate Capital source proprietary deal flow?
The firm relies on deep local networks built through on-the-ground operating partners, waste-picker cooperatives, and municipal relationships in target countries. Unlike auction-based processes, many deals originate through supply-chain mapping that identifies critical bottlenecks in informal collection networks. The firm's corporate limited partners also provide visibility into under-invested segments of their Asian supply chains.
Is Circulate Capital structured as a single-family office or does it operate more like a venture firm?
Circulate Capital is neither a family office nor a traditional venture firm. It functions as a dedicated investment manager with a blended-capital structure, raising funds from corporate LPs and development finance institutions. Its vehicles sit between project finance and growth equity, reflecting the capital intensity and long hold periods of waste-infrastructure assets.
Does Circulate Capital participate in fund commitments or only direct deals?
Circulate Capital invests directly into operating companies and infrastructure projects rather than committing as a limited partner to other funds. The firm structures bespoke equity and debt transactions tailored to enterprises that often lack formal credit histories but control significant material flows. Direct engagement allows the firm to install operational expertise and governance frameworks absent in the informal sector.
Which sectors does Circulate Capital explicitly avoid?
The firm does not invest in waste-to-energy incineration, landfill operations, or unproven chemical recycling technologies lacking commercial scale. Circulate Capital's mandate excludes generalist consumer-tech or software investments unless they provide critical traceability or logistics infrastructure for physical waste recovery. The investment policy explicitly screens out any activity that displaces informal waste collectors without providing alternative livelihoods.
Profile maintained by Altss using OSINT (open-source intelligence), regulatory filings, licensed data partners, and verified direct submissions. Read the methodology. Last updated: . Continuous refresh with full update cycles at least every 30 days.
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