Sean Wright, investment principal at JLL Spark Global Ventures, is one of our top 50 Emerging Leaders in corporate venturing for 2025.
Sean Wright is a former entrepreneur, having run investment management business, Carden Capital before his career in corporate venture. This experience helps him understand the challenges of the startup founders he deals with as investment principal at JLL Spark Global Ventures, the CVC arm of real estate firm JLL.
“Having been an entrepreneur for 12 years, I come to this with an understanding for what it takes to build a business and empathy for what the founders are experiencing,” he says.
Wright has been in corporate venturing since 2017, starting at Check24 Ventures, followed by Stanley Ventures and, for the past two years, at JLL Spark Global Ventures, where he leads investments in Europe and the Middle East.
Wright is focused on AI and sustainability. AI agents, he says, have the potential to take over many tasks in the real estate industry. On the topic of sustainability, Wright points out that the built environment is responsible for 40% of CO2 emissions. “There is strong pressure on the built environment to decarbonise existing buildings and build new structures that are very low-carbon emitting. That is creating pressure on the real estate industry, but also creating great investment opportunities,” he says.
“I come to this with an understanding for what it takes to build a business and empathy for what the founders are experiencing.”
One of Wright’s sustainability investments was backing a UK-based sustainability data company last year.
JLL Spark Global Ventures has invested $425m across various funds since 2017. The team of 12 aims to invest in companies that could work together with JLL and JLL’s clients, but there is no requirement for an immediate tie-up for them to invest.
Wright’s advice for successful corporate investing is to stay humble and to be patient. As a long-term investment professional who has seen several boom-and-bust cycles, he says it is important to take the long view. “Remember, Rome was not built in a day,” he says. “Your investment career is going to be something that proves itself over decades not a couple years.”
See the full list of Emerging Leaders 2025 here.
