InvestEU: EIF invests €22.5 million in Global Social Impact Fund II to back social impact-related business projects in Spain

• EIF's becomes lead investor in Global Social Impact Fund II with €22.5 million pledge.
• The fund invests in small businesses improving livelihoods of people at risk of economic and social exclusion.
• Companies involved have strong business models, high growth potential and consolidated management teams.
• EIF investment is backed by InvestEU programme.

The European Investment Fund (EIF) is investing €22.5 million in Global Social Impact Fund II (GSIF Spain), managed by Global Social Impact Investments (GSI). The pledge by the EIF makes it the lead investor in this Spain-focused social impact fund backed by InvestEU programme.

GSFI Spain will invest in growth-stage and small businesses helping to improve the livelihoods of people at risk of economic and social exclusion. It focuses on projects promoting employment for the most socially vulnerable groups by creating high quality jobs and making it easier for disadvantaged people to access goods and services, improving their livelihoods, enhancing their financial and social inclusion and helping to alleviate poverty and inequality in Spain.

“This new investment reflects our commitment to social impact investing in Spain,” said EIF Chief Executive Marjut Falkstedt . “The agreement with Global Social Impact Investments, backed by the InvestEU program, will expand access to finance for companies fostering social inclusion and access to employment for the most vulnerable groups, thereby contributing to their social and economic inclusion, an objective that is in the DNA of the EIF and the European Union. “

With a European Social Entrepreneurship Fund (EuSEF) structure and under Article 9 of the SFDR regulation, at least a third of GSFI Spain's investment committee members are women, granting it “smart gender” classification. The EIF investment was made possible by backing from the InvestEU programme and in particular its financial instruments aiming to support social impact investment in the European Union.

“We are very pleased to have the help of the EIF and the InvestEU programme to meet the investment targets of our GSIF Spain fund. This investment successfully closes the fund, confirming that economic profitability and social impact can go hand in hand, and there is still room for innovation and the development of new investment models. We are certain that in Spain we lead the social impact investing, and our portfolio and pipeline are full of innovative business projects that, in turn, generate positive direct impact on vulnerable groups,” added Co-founder and President of GSI María Ángeles León.

GSIF Spain’s portfolio currently comprises four Spanish small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) tackling economic and social l exclusion via both direct employment and the products and services they provide. These companies have strong business models, high growth potential and consolidated management teams.

In addition to the EIF, GSIF Spain is also being supported by other institutional investors such as ICO and private capital firms (mainly family offices).

The European Investment Fund (EIF) is part of the European Investment Bank Group (EIB Group). Its central mission is to support Europe's micro, small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) by helping them to access finance. The EIF designs and develops venture and growth capital, guarantees and microfinance instruments that specifically target this market segment. In this role, it contributes to the achievement of key EU policy goals such as competitiveness and growth, innovation and digitalisation, social impact, skills and human capital, climate action and environmental sustainability.

About InvestEU

The InvestEU programme provides the European Union with crucial long-term funding by leveraging substantial private and public funds in support of a sustainable recovery. It also helps mobilise private investment for EU policy priorities, such as the European Green Deal and the digital transition. The InvestEU programme brings together under one roof the multitude of EU financial instruments currently available to support investment in the Member States, making funding for investment projects in Europe simpler, more efficient and more flexible. The programme consists of three components: the InvestEU Fund, the InvestEU Advisory Hub and the InvestEU Portal. The InvestEU Fund is implemented through financial partners who will invest in projects using the EU budget guarantee of €26.2 billion. The entire budget guarantee will back the investment projects of the implementing partners, increase their risk-bearing capacity and thus mobilise at least €372 billion in additional investment.

About Global Social Impact Investments

Global Social Impact Investments SGIIC, SAU (GSI) is a Spanish impact investing fund manager that seeks to deliver attractive returns for its investors through investment in companies with a positive social and environmental impact. Founded in 2020 and registered with the CNMV (Spanish Securities and Exchange Commission), GSI specialises in identifying profitable and sustainable companies contributing to the socioeconomic inclusion of people in vulnerable situations. The firm’s management team has a strong impact investment track record spanning over 20 years, together with expertise in the regions and domains in which it invests.

GSI currently has 14 professionals specialising in investment and measuring the social impact of this investment and manages two investment vehicles — GSIF Africa (Sicav SIF) y GSIF Spain (FESE) — with a total of €100 million in assets under management. It is part of Santa Comba Gestión S.L., a family holding company bringing together financial, business, and philanthropic projects and led by María Ángeles León and Francisco García Paramés.

Press contacts:

EIF:
Maite Cordero | m.corderomunoz@eib.org, tel.: +34 606 66 82 62
Website: www.eif.org — X: @eif_eu

Global Social Impact Investments:
GSI: Isabel Albella, Communications Manager: isabel@globalsocialimpact.es
Agencia comma: Teresa Amor: tamor@agenciacomma.com