Carbon removal platform CUR8 has appointed Edwina Johnson as chief operating officer as it prepares for a new phase of expansion, aiming to leverage experience from the fintech world to help scale a fast growing but still maturing market.
Johnson previously held leadership roles at MoneyGram and fintech startup Alloy, where she helped scale the business from seed stage to unicorn. She is set to oversee operations as the company moves from early traction to structured growth with a remit to build internal systems, expanding the team, strengthening risk and due diligence processes and supporting international expansion.
She is also expected to deepen relationships with corporate buyers and financial institutions, positioning CUR8 as an intermediary that can standardize quality and help unlock financing in what is still a fragmented market.
Making the move to carbon removal
Speaking with Carbon Herald she shared that after years in fintech, she began to see clear parallels with carbon removal. “There is a real sense of the early days of fintech and that community. True innovation, true problems are being solved. There’s a lot of room for growth and scale up,” she said.
She also sees the current moment as a signal for professionals from other industries. “If you’re actually interested in building, this is a fantastic industry to be in. People from fintech, energy, or even marketing can bring their skills and make a real impact now while the market is still forming.”
At CUR8, Johnson’s mandate is straightforward but complex. “It’s about scale,” she said. “You go through an initial stage of business where you’re figuring things out and getting that initial traction and product market fit. Then when it’s time to double down, bringing in an operations leader is about building the connective tissue so you can grow faster without things breaking.”
“A fantastic industry to be in”
The company works with corporate buyers, banks and carbon removal project developers, acting as a curator and risk assessor in a still evolving ecosystem. Johnson said CUR8’s due diligence processes have been approved by banking partners, a step she believes will help unlock financing for projects. Her experience in heavily regulated industries, including global payments, shapes that approach. “Regulation provides a lot of opportunity for startups and businesses generally,” she said, adding that companies should view it as one reason to act, not the only one.
Her early impression of the sector is one of unusual collaboration. “Everyone feels jointly collaborative. We all want to make this happen,” she said. “Even people that are competitors are very open, very willing to talk about what’s happening and how we can make change together.”
The broader carbon removal market has many challenges but is widely seen as essential to meeting global net zero targets. While energy infrastructure and efficiency have drawn significant capital, executives like Johnson argue carbon removal remains underappreciated. For builders willing to navigate policy risk and market complexity, she said, “this is a fantastic industry to be in.”
The appointment also comes a day after CUR8 announced a fresh investment round, underscoring continued investor appetite despite political and regulatory headwinds.
Read more: CUR8 Secures New Strategic Investment From Tokyo Gas-Backed Acario
