HYTCH RECEIVES FIRST INVESTMENT FROM TENNESSEE IMPACT FUND

 

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (Aug. 15, 2018) – Hytch, LLC, a Nashville-based social impact technology company is the first recipient of an investment from the newly established Tennessee Impact Fund. The new capital for Hytch, which brings the company's seed round to 145% of target, comes from a program managed by Launch Tennessee (LaunchTN), a public-private partnership fostering entrepreneurship.

“This is an exciting day,” said John Lanahan, director of capital formation. “The idea, concept, and thesis of the Impact Fund has evolved over the last six months. Hytch is the perfect example of the type of company we want to support. They have a significant opportunity to address growing mobility issues that are plaguing many urban markets. And for every dollar of revenue Hytch generates, they can quantify the amount of associated impact for Tennessee or any market in which they operate.”

Hytch deployed the first universal reward platform used by communities, corporations and commuters to manage incentives paid to drivers and passengers for emissions reducing behavior. Participation has exceeded projections, with over 3.7 million miles logged, shared and rewarded in Middle Tennessee alone. Since its February 2018 launch, Hytch provided an immediate, incentivized personal and public transit solution across the state of Tennessee. Users have saved the emissions equivalent of more than 65,000 trees by riding together. By rewarding participants who use the platform, Hytch reduces traffic congestion, greenhouse gasses and travel time for everyone, without increasing infrastructure costs.

“This investment by LaunchTN has been a major catalyst for attracting additional private capital,” says Mark Cleveland, co-founder and CEO. “Hytch is focused on incentives and rewards that drive positive habits. We believe behavior is infrastructure -- an idea getting a lot of attention from thought leaders.”

Tennessee Impact Fund participation follows venture capital investments from InCrowd Capital and XMI Growth, together with environmental impact investors from around the world. This transaction was structured by 2nd Generation Financial. The capital will be used to hire talent and build capacity to scale the Hytch Rewards platform. Fast adoption and measurable results in Nashville brought a lot of attention from major metro regions struggling with congestion and traffic, including Seattle, Atlanta, Denver and Detroit, among others.

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ABOUT LAUNCH TENNESSEE
Launch Tennessee is a public-private partnership that fosters entrepreneurship, with the goal of making Tennessee the most startup-friendly state in the nation. Partnering with Entrepreneur Centers in six regions, Launch Tennessee creates collaboration among entrepreneurs, the private sector, capital sources, institutions and government to offer entrepreneurs what they need to succeed and stay in Tennessee to build companies and create jobs. Visit LaunchTN.org to discover what makes Tennessee a great state for startups.