FMO - Dutch entrepreneurial development bank

We‘ve just released our Climate Investment Playbook, which provides guidance to #venturecapital and #privateequity investors new to climate investing: https://lnkd.in/e7Y-es-i The climate investment market has grown rapidly in recent years. As heat waves, floods and droughts increasingly make headlines worldwide, climate adaptation and resilience solutions are becoming a more prominent focus for investors. In fact, the World Economic Forum estimates that climate adaptation could be worth $2 trillion per year by 2026. For investors new to field, it can be challenging to navigate the world of climate impact management, with few frameworks/methodologies tailored to VC or PE investors in #emergingmarkets. That’s why we’ve published this guidance with British International Investment, explaining the steps investors can take to integrate #climatefinance into their investments, aligning it with key international frameworks. Discover how you can maximize your impact through our Climate Investment Playbook: https://lnkd.in/e7Y-es-i Jorim Schraven Vedantika Bhagat Charissa Bosma Thelma B.

What do all investors need to know regarding forestry #ESG considerations to maximize impact and financial returns? We've just published a guide on exactly that. Sustainable forestry projects can be an impactful part of a climate-positive investment portfolio, yet #forestry is a unique asset class – the scale and time scales of projects, the diversity of forestry project types, and the dependence on a rapidly evolving landscape of certifications and regulations all mean that forestry investments set a specific challenge for investors wanting to enter the space. Our Mobilising Finance for Forests (MFF) program has released the “ESG Guide for Forestry Investments”, which covers critical #ESG elements investors need to understand about #sustainableforestry projects to make informed investment and lending decisions. Access it through the below PDF. We also offer a free newsletter full of resources that help improve the knowledge and capacity of the investment ecosystem to manage the complexity of investing in forests. Sign up via the link in our comments.

What companies and projects does FMO invest in? https://lnkd.in/eYg8gQSa We've just published our Monthly Transaction Overview so you can read more about which #projects we supported in June 2024. Read it here: https://lnkd.in/eYg8gQSa #ImpactInvesting #DevelopmentFinance #PioneerDevelopScale

We've arranged our largest syndication ever for USD 295 mln to our long-term partner Access Bank Plc Nigeria, alongside 8 other impact investors. The funding will support SMEs, including those led by women and youth, providing crucial capital as Nigeria faces its most severe economic crisis in a generation.    MSMEs provide 86% of the population with employment and contribute to 50% of the GDP, but many face challenges accessing finance. Through this deal, not only does it support #economicdevelopment in #Nigeria, as our CEO Michael Jongeneel (he/him) noted in an interview with the largest Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf, it also strengthens the Netherlands' geopolitical interests. How? By ensuring we have a seat at international tables and ensure the Dutch business community's needs are met, and by contributing to political stability on a global level. Read our CEO's thoughts on this landmark transaction and the political climate surrounding this deal, and view the newspaper article (in Dutch): https://lnkd.in/eMEYSpjK    And many thanks to all our syndication partners: FMO Investment Management British International Investment Blue Orchard Finance FinDev Canada Finnfund Norfund Oikocredit Swedfund International BIO - the Belgian Investment Company for Developing Countries VVD Nieuw Sociaal Contract BBB BoerBurgerBeweging

Our Impact Director Jorim Schraven shares insights into our pioneering #marketcreation approach & why it's important to create new, investible markets: https://lnkd.in/e3F5qvkY With an annual USD 4 trillion financing gap necessary to bridge if we want to achieve the SDGs by 2030, it's critical that we develop market for impactful projects to thrive, even if they aren't financeable now. As such, we aim to foster a new generation of impactful entrepreneurs and projects by breaking barriers that stifle growth and prevent investors from investing. Among the bilateral European DFIs, we're among the frontrunners (together with our partner Triple Jump) of this approach. But what does it look like in practice? 🌎 Through our Mobilising Finance for Forests program, we supported the afforesting of degraded pastureland in Colombia, planting native timber species and acai palms with the aim to scale the project from ~570 to 7,500 hectares: https://lnkd.in/e4vaeJTd 🌏 We're transforming the Nepalese financial sector to make it more attractive for foreign investors through our Invest for Impact Nepal platform. Despite their being ample development opportunities in the country, without enough private investors, (M)SMEs will remain financially excluded, which we aim to help reform: https://lnkd.in/eqwmfeG2 For more examples on our market creation approach, read the interview with Jorim (in Dutch) here: https://lnkd.in/e3F5qvkY #ImpactInvesting #DevelopmentFinance

We've updated the resources and insights we've created around #sustainableforestry as part of our Mobilising Finance for Forests program: https://lnkd.in/eqwMJPZD MFF is a #blendedfinance program we established with the UK government that aims to combat #deforestation and other environmentally unsustainable land use practices contributing to global climate change. Through our Learning, Convening, and Influencing Platform, we want to increase the scale and impact of investments in the forests and sustainable land use (FSLU) sector by building investors' knowledge and capacity. With a range of knowledge products, event summaries, thought leadership pieces, interviews, toolkits and guides--specifically developed for #imapctinvestors, DFIs, and project developers--we hope to help enhance key stakeholders' understanding of and capacity to invest in nature. Access our open-source knowledge library here: https://lnkd.in/eqwMJPZD

Last year, our Facility Services department started an exciting initiative to help colleagues new to the Netherlands learn one of the most quintessential Dutch activities: #biking! For both new learners or those who wanted to (re)gain confidence when biking in the city, we started this free program to help colleagues better integrate into a country famously known for having more bikes than people (17 million people to 23 million bikes)! Last year's course was so well-received that we ended up bringing in a professional cycling instructor to help coach students over 5 weeks, which has been nothing short of a success. We just finished the 2nd course, which ran from May to June, and to help improve our colleague's wellbeing, we aim to regularly offer these free courses over a period of 5 weeks, teaching colleagues how to bike, #cycling in traffic, and even what to look for when buying their first bike. Many thanks to Melchior Smallegange and our Facility Services Department for kickstarting this program, for the support from our Talent & Development department, and to Melanie from Den Haag Fietst! for her excellent lessons. And of course, congratulations to all our colleagues who completed the biking course or will start!

We've just released our guide to help companies, investors, and fund managers in #emergingmarkets have a better understanding of the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR). The SDFR was introduced by the European Commission to improve transparency, reduce #greenwashing and direct capital towards more sustainable investments. Since the EU has various sustainability measures that are interrelated and at different stages of development, it can be difficult to navigate, particularly for fund managers, as they are expected to provide objective, transparent and quantifiable #ESG performance information. To help support our portfolio with understanding how these global regulations apply to them in an emerging economies context, we've released this Guidance Note in collaboration with the Joint Impact Model Foundation, British International Investment, and Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP. Access and download our guide below.

We're supporting low- and middle-income households and MSMEs across Sub-Saharan Africa through the Regional MSME Investment Fund for Sub-Saharan Africa "REGMIFA". REGMIFA is a debt fund we've invested in since 2010, which is managed by our long-term partner Symbiotics. The fund reaches financial institutions that on-lend to MSME end-borrowers that are either too small or risky for us to directly invest in, and is active in countries outside of our portfolio (such as Niger, Angola, and Mali). Through our USD 10 mln investment—which qualifies as both 100% Reducing Inequalities and 2X Challenge-aligned—we'll be able to support income and job generation and help foster #economicdevelopment across the SSA region, with REGMIFA also providing technical assistance to its investees. We look forward to jointly increasing our impact throughout the region via REGMIFA! #ImpactInvesting #DevelopmentFinance

We're supporting small entrepreneurs in Ethiopia through a NASIRA guarantee program we just signed with our new client Cooperative Bank of Oromia: https://lnkd.in/eMYAcXQw One of the largest banks in Ethiopia, Coopbank reaches 13.3 million customers across the country, with 80% of the bank's branches located in outlying or rural areas. It's also one of the only banks actively lending to MSMEs and the agricultural sector, and launched the sector's first uncollaterized #digitallending app and alternative banking channel alongside traditional financial services. To ensure underserved (agricultural) MSMEs receive ample credit, we're providing Coopbank a USD 10 mln NASIRA loan portfolio guarantee, funded by the European Commission. NASIRA is one of our most innovative programs: it encourages local banks to extend their funding to small entrepreneurs often perceived as risky (such as women or young people) through a risk-sharing agreement, which means the program will cover any potential credit losses. In a country where, according to the UNDP, only 6% of the 1.5 million MSMEs have access to finance, we're pleased to support the backbone of the Ethiopian economy together with Coopbank, and look forward to this new chapter of jointly transforming the Ethiopian banking landscape. #TeamEurope #ImpactInvesting #DevelopmentFinance