Launch of the Green Earth Impact Fund

• The Green Earth Impact Fund (GEIF) allows professional clients to invest in a diversified portfolio targeting climate change, water protection, and biodiversity in emerging and frontier markets with BlueOrchard Finance, a pioneer and leading asset manager in the field of impact investment and member of the Schroders Group.
• Investors can benefit from BlueOrchard’s successful track record of over 20 years in impact investing and Schroders’ distribution network and fund administration expertise.
• Initiated by the Luxembourg Ministry of Finance, the fund will be set up as a fund of funds (FoF) strategy providing capital to innovative private equity, sustainable real assets and private debt funds. In addition, the fund benefits from a de-risking mechanism as a result of the anchor investment by the Ministry of Finance within a blended finance structure.
• The GEIF has sustainable investment as its objective within the meaning of Article 9 of the SFDR regulation¹
• The target size of the GEIF is USD 250m.

Zurich/Luxembourg/London, 17 April 2023 – Schroders, BlueOrchard Finance Ltd, and the Luxembourg Ministry of Finance today announced the first close of the Green Earth Impact Fund (GEIF, or the Fund), which is managed in a joint effort between BlueOrchard as Investment Manager and Schroders as the AIFM² providing risk and portfolio services to the fund. The GEIF allows institutional investors to invest in a portfolio of funds, which seek to address environmental protection and climate change and to benefit from de-risking mechanisms such as first-loss protection. The Fund was conceived in June 2022 and has now achieved its first closing with a USD 25 million commitment from the Luxembourg Ministry of Finance. The GEIF will operate as a value-added vehicle to drive and channel sustainable and impact investments in climate mitigation, climate adaptation, and the protection of water and biodiversity.

While remaining highly selective in a growing market, the focus of the GEIF is to capture investment opportunities in emerging and frontier markets that contribute to the impact goals of the fund and ensure at the same time a broad diversification across geographic regions and asset classes. Investment opportunities will be selected by combining different commercial, sector, and impact criteria to provide investors with competitive returns, while at the same time contributing to the success of environmentally sustainable and impact investing initiatives and innovative projects.

"Today's closing of this innovative investment fund is a significant milestone in our efforts to achieve sustainable growth and build carbon-neutral and resilient economies in emerging markets. As we face unprecedented environmental challenges, it is essential that we take bold action to protect our planet and ensure a sustainable future for all. This blended finance partnership is a powerful example of how public and private sectors can work together to drive meaningful impact. By setting up the GEIF and providing a first-loss investment, Luxembourg underlines its commitment to mobilise private and public capital to help finance a more sustainable future”, says Luxembourg Minister of Finance, Yuriko Backes.

Philipp Mueller, CEO of BlueOrchard, comments: “We are excited to offer professional investors the opportunity to invest in climate action and biodiversity in growth markets, contributing to the protection of vulnerable communities and a just transition. GEIF investors will have the opportunity to benefit from the fund's risk-mitigating blended finance structure, a diversified portfolio of fund investments, and a thorough investment selection and impact assessment process.”

Finbarr Browne, CEO of Schroder Investment Management (Europe) S.A., comments: “Schroders is proud to be supporting the Luxembourg State on this initiative and to act as Management Company (AIFM) for the new fund. Since the project was announced in June 2022, we have worked closely with the Ministry of Finance, BlueOrchard, and various service providers to establish the GEIF and facilitate the Ministry’s investment at this first close. Our joint focus will now move onto capital raising in Luxembourg, across Europe and other international markets.”

The GEIF’s mission is to strengthen the sustainable finance ecosystem, contribute to the transition to climate-neutral and resilient economies, and achieve low-carbon and environmentally sustainable growth in emerging and frontier markets. The fund will seek to achieve this by helping to close the public-private financing gap through attracting capital from both the public and the private sectors. The fund’s objective and investment framework are modeled in consideration of the Paris Agreement, the Luxembourg International Climate Finance Strategy 2021–2025, and the EU Taxonomy Regulation, among others. The GEIF has the objective of sustainable investment (within the meaning of Article 9 SFDR) and is expected to invest at least 90% of its net asset value in investments considered as sustainable under the SFDR.

BlueOrchard, a member of the Schroders Group, is a pioneer in impact investing and climate finance. Its investment strategies combine positive social and environmental impact with financial return. The firm has a track record of over 20 years and a global reach of 260 million beneficiaries. BlueOrchard is a leading investor in climate change adaptation and its emerging market private equity strategies have enabled over 40 million people to benefit from affordable climate risk insurance. BlueOrchard has invested in over 105 emerging and frontier markets through a network of over 720 financial institutions. The firm's impact and ESG management process is best-in-class and externally verified.

Founded in 1804, Schroders is one of Europe’s largest independent investment management firms by assets under management. As at 31 December 2022, assets under management were £737.5 billion (€831.3 billion; $887.2 billion).

As part of an international tender process, GEIF has selected and appointed Banque de Luxembourg as its Depositary Service Provider, EFA (European Fund Administration) as its Administration Agent, Registrar and Transfer Agent and Ernst & Young as the Fund’s independent Auditors.

More product-specific information is available to qualified investors on the BlueOrchard website: www.blueorchard.com/products/green-earth-impact-fund-geif/

¹ Regulation (EU) 2019/2088 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 November 2019 on sustainability‐related disclosures in the financial services sector (“SFDR”).

²Alternative Investment Fund Manager

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About BlueOrchard Finance Ltd

BlueOrchard is a leading global impact investment manager and member of the Schroders Group. As a pioneering impact investor, the firm is dedicated to generating lasting positive impact for communities and the environment, while aiming at providing attractive returns to investors. BlueOrchard was founded in 2001, by initiative of the UN, as the first commercial manager of microfinance debt investments worldwide. Today, the firm offers impact investment solutions across asset classes, connecting millions of entrepreneurs in emerging and frontier markets with investors with the aim to make impact investment solutions accessible to all and to advance the conscious use of capital. Being a professional investment manager and expert in innovative blended finance mandates, BlueOrchard has a sophisticated international investor base and is a trusted partner of leading global development finance institutions. To date, BlueOrchard has invested over USD 10 billion across more than 105 countries. 260 million underserved people and MSMEs in emerging and frontier markets received access to financial and related services with the support of BlueOrchard as of December 2022. For additional information, please visit: www.blueorchard.com.

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