The European Investment Fund has made its second investment into IB Deuda Impacto España committing a further €25m to support Spanish businesses generating high social impact.
The European Investment Fund (EIF) has invested €25m in IB Deuda Impacto España, an Article 9 social impact debt fund managed by Madrid-based Impact Bridge Asset Management.
The €150m fund, which has been hailed as the largest social impact fund in Spain, plans to invest into up to 40 Spanish businesses in areas such as rural development, labour inclusion, climate and environment, circular economy, sustainable agriculture, and gender equality.
This latest investment is the EIF’s second investment in the fund after it committed €30m shortly after the fund’s launch in 2023, alongside investments of €10m from CaixaBank’s social investment bank MicroBank, €10m from the Instituto de Crédito Oficial as well as commitments made by other unnamed institutional investors, family offices and private investors. Other notable investors in the fund include the Spanish government-backed €400m Social Impact Fund, which invested €30m last year.
Speaking to Impact Investor, Maria Samoilova, managing partner at Impact Bridge and head of IB Deuda Impacto España, said that in addition to the large ticket investors, there are also around 300 investors with smaller positions in the fund: “We now have a large and diversified investor base composed of high-net-worth individuals, institutional investors, pension funds, family offices and religious institutions.”
Samoilova said the EIF’s latest investment, which brings the total fundraising to more than €100m, was critical to achieving the fund’s aims and attracting other investors.
“We are the only impact debt vehicle focused on Spain, and the EIF has been the cornerstone of this project since its launch. Thanks to the EIF’s support, we have been able to attract other private and institutional investors. Of course, the more we can raise, the more weight we can have on the market and the larger the impact we can achieve.”
Samoilova said that the EIF’s investment also offered the fund and Impact Bridge greater visibility and with this, a tremendous pipeline of opportunities to invest into.
“We are very diligent on the impact we want to achieve and very restrictive on what counts as impact. With the additional funds, we will also be able to do more for society,” she added.
Spanish Regional Resilience Fund
The EIF’s investment is being made through the Alternative Lending for Sustainable Development (ALSD) instrument, which the EIF explained invests in alternative finance providers to expand the financing options for small and medium businesses (SMEs) to increase innovation, sustainability and competitiveness.
The instrument is one of two launched by the EIF through the Spanish Regional Resilience Fund, which was created by the government to invest a portion of NextGenerationEU loans into environmental and social projects in Spain’s autonomous communities.
The aim is to boost investments and develop projects in eight priority areas: social and affordable housing; urban renewal; transport and sustainable tourism; the energy transition; water and waste management; the care economy; research, development and innovation; and the competitiveness of industry and SMEs.
In response to questions from Impact Investor, Marjut Falkstedt, EIF chief executive, said the EIF was pleased to reinforce its commitment to the fund in what she described as a “joint mission to increase financing to those Spanish SMEs which are engaged in delivering impact in the inclusive and sustainable economy”.
Falkstedt said the EIF’s support would help the fund reach its target size and amplify its social and environmental impact across multiple sectors and regions.
“With this operation we contribute to providing alternative credit solutions to small and mid-sized companies, bridging critical financing gaps, ensuring that impactful enterprises, particularly those addressing pressing societal or environmental needs, can secure the capital they need. The support of the Spanish Regional Resilience Fund to this operation further highlights its very real contribution to the Spanish economy by providing alternative financing options to these impact driven SMEs”
Existing investments
The fund has already made 11 investments, the most recent being an investment in a Madrid-based renewable energy provider, in December 2024, and a social housing project in Barcelona, in October 2024.
“The renewable energy provider has a social angle as they aim to improve access to affordable energy technologies as well as employment for more vulnerable groups in society, whilst the social housing project involves the construction of a highly energy efficient building so it’s targeting both environmental and social impact,” explained Samoilova.
In September 2024, the fund also invested into a biomass plant in the northern region of Galicia.
“The plant not only produces renewable energy but also combats forest fires because it recycles deadwood and at the same time, creates employment opportunities for the local population,” she added.
