GIF Growth raises more than $50m for emerging-market companies
The vehicle will provide ticket sizes of $1 million to $10 million.
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The Global Innovation Fund (GIF) has secured over $50 million in funding through its permanent, blended finance vehicle, GIF Growth, from a mix of government and private investors.
GIF Growth utilises a blended finance structure designed to de-risk investments and mobilise commercial capital in emerging markets. By combining concessional capital from governments with private investment, the vehicle provides significant downside protection. Through this structure, GIF Growth offers entrepreneurs right-sized debt financing, with ticket sizes of $1 million to $10 million and instruments and products which meet the needs of these businesses.
The evergreen fund will invest across sectors, with a focus on social impact, climate resilience and gender equality outcomes.
Key backers in this funding round include the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO), which provided anchor funding to seed the strategy; the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida), which provided a portfolio guarantee to help mitigate investor risk and attract private capital; and Global Affairs Canada, which invested as a patient anchor investor. Other backers include Banca Etica, Italy’s cooperative bank focused on ethical finance; the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), which is funding a technical assistance programme for portfolio companies; and This Day Foundation, which provided philanthropic capital.
Randeep Sarai, Canada’s secretary of state for international development, said: “Sustainable development succeeds when innovative financing supports strong businesses and makes meaningful differences in people’s lives. Canada’s investment in GIF Growth will help scale high-impact innovations, ensuring that new businesses can attract the private capital they need to build inclusive, climate-resilient, and prosperous economies.”
Kjell Forsberg, deputy director general and head of department for trade, private sector and financial instruments at Sida, commented: “To meet massive global challenges, international aid must become more cost-effective, innovative, and catalytic. Through our guarantee for GIF Growth, Sida’s partnership will provide the risk-mitigation to mobilise private capital, empower companies to scale, and improve lives.”
Aldo Soldi, president of Banca Etica, noted: “Banca Etica’s ongoing commitment to ethical finance aims to drive meaningful positive changes to social and economic inclusion, environmental protection and innovation. Our investment is designed to help GIF Growth to catalyse further private capital to meet these aims.”
Gary Lubner, founder of This Day Foundation, said: “Too many of the most promising businesses tackling poverty, inequality and climate resilience in emerging markets are unable to access the investment they need to grow. By bringing together public, private, and philanthropic capital, GIF Growth is tackling that critical gap in the market by backing ambitious, high-impact entrepreneurs and organisations with the potential to improve millions of lives. We are delighted to support this mission to create lasting change.”
GIF Growth has a target of raising up to $100 million over the coming years.
“High-impact enterprises in emerging markets hold the keys to solving some of our planet’s most urgent challenges, yet they are systematically starved of the growth capital they need to scale,” said Avinash Mishra, Global Innovation Fund’s chief investment officer and head of GIF Growth. “GIF Growth is designed specifically to dismantle this barrier. By deploying smart, concessional, and right-sized capital, we aren’t just funding companies, we are de-risking entire ecosystems and proving to the broader financial market that impact investing in emerging markets is a viable, high-return proposition.”
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