About The Fund

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About the Fund

The Green for Growth Fund (GGF) is an impact investment fund that mitigates climate change and promotes sustainable economic growth by investing in measures that reduce energy consumption, resource use and CO2 emissions.

The fund, a blended finance structure, is a public-private partnership that leverages risk-capital provided by public institutions with additional private capital to substantially increase investment volumes to regions and sectors that do not normally attract such flows, and is an early and successful example of blended finance in action. The fund channels this dedicated financing to businesses and households through local financial institutions, and through direct investments to eligible projects and companies.

A dedicated Technical Assistance Facility provides know-how and technical expertise to ensure that these investments are successfully implemented and to a high international standard. It raises awareness on the importance of energy and resource efficiency and renewable energy and helps to develop the capacity of the GGF’s partners, as well as the market in general, to successfully deliver green finance and increase its demand.

The GGF operates in 19 markets across Southeast Europe, Turkey, the European Eastern Neighbourhood Region, and the Middle East and North Africa.

How the fund works

Founded in 2009 and advised by Finance in Motion, the GGF is a unique public-private partnership with a layered risk-return structure that blends funding from public sources and international financial institutions to attract private capital, engaging a wide array of investors in its activities.

As an initiative of the European Investment Bank and Germany’s KfW Development Bank, the GGF is designed to complement existing programs and funding sources in the regions in which it operates.

To achieve meaningful green impact, the GGF's investments target at least a 20% reduction in energy consumption and/or CO2 emissions, as well as additional impacts related to water, waste and material inputs. The fund achieves this by working with local financial and non-financial institutions, and renewable energy project developers in its regions of operation.   

 

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Where the GGF invests

Where the GGF invests

Our Investees

For details about the partners we finance, please visit this page.

Institutional Structure

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The initiators of the Green for Growth Fund are the European Investment Bank and Germany’s KfW Development Bank. The fund is additionally supported by contributions from the European Commission and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and a diverse group of international financial institutions and private investors.

Appointed by the shareholders, the fund’s Board of Directors is the main decision-making body, overseeing the fund and determining its strategy and approach.
 The board appoints the Investment Committee, comprising specialists in finance and energy. The Investment Committee approves all investment decisions, ensuring that they comply with the fund’s high standards and the strategic direction laid out by the Board of Directors.

The Board has also appointed an FX Committee to vet pricing and other matters pertaining to the fund’s local currency investments made utilizing its “L Share” class. These specialized shares enable the fund to internally absorb currency fluctuations made in local currency by allocating the related foreign exchange gains and losses to this dedicated share class.  

The Technical Assistance Facility Committee approves the technical assistance projects proposed by the Advisor.

Specialist firms provide professional services to the GGF. The Advisor, Finance in Motion, supported by the Technical Advisor, MACS, ensures that each investment proposed to the Investment Committee has been thoroughly reviewed in terms of risks, opportunities, and impact.

Finance in Motion as the Technical Assistance Facility Manager coordinates and conducts technical assistance projects under the supervision of the Technical Assistance Facility Committee.

Advisor

The GGF’s Advisor is Finance in Motion, a global impact asset manager focused exclusively on sustainable development in low and middle-income countries. Finance in Motion is responsible for identifying and structuring investments, preparing legal documentation, monitoring ongoing investment and development performance, and managing the relationships with the fund’s partner institutions. Finance in Motion also provides risk and transaction management services to the GGF. For more information on Finance in Motion, please visit www.finance-in-motion.com.

Technical Advisor

Finance in Motion serves as the Advisor has selected MACS Energy & Water as its Technical Advisor. MACS is an international consulting company with interdisciplinary capacities in the finance and infrastructure sectors. MACS provides technical advice and support in assessing and reporting the environmental impacts of the Fund. For more information, click here.

 

Technical Assistance Facility Manager

Finance in Motion serves as the Technical Assistance Facility Manager, working to identify and support the technical assistance needs of the fund’s investees, build the green finance ecosystem, and develop and expand the energy efficiency, resource efficiency, and renewable energy sectors in the fund’s regions of operation. 

Depository, Central Admin. & Domiciliation Agent

Banque de Luxembourg has been appointed as the GGF’s Depositary, Central Administration and Domiciliation Agent, with European Fund Administration acting as Central Administration for the GGF by sub-delegation of Banque de Luxembourg.

General Secretary

Innpact serves as the General Secretary to the GGF.

Legal Advisor

The legal advisor of the fund as to Luxembourg law is Arendt.

Auditor

Ernst & Young provides auditing services.

Board of Directors

Simon Gupta Chairperson

Simon Gupta is the Founder & Managing Director of Broadpeak GmbH, a Swiss-based International Advisory Company specialised in Impact Finance. He has 20 years of experience in development finance in Latin America, Africa and Asia. Simon has been involved in the set-up of multiple blended finance structures on the LP side as well as the GP side.

Before founding Broadpeak, he worked for DEG, KfW, and responsAbility.

Simon graduated from the Université du Québec à Montréal as a Financial Economist.


Chris Knowles Member

Christopher Knowles is an independent advisor on climate and environmental finance. He was a long-term member of EIB until 2018, where he led the climate and environmental finance team, contributing scale and innovation to the bank’s climate change agenda. Chris has served on the supervisory boards and advisory committees of numerous clean energy, environmental, infrastructure, and carbon funds. He is currently a Member of the Board of the eco.business fund. Chris holds an M.Sc in Management Science from the University of Durham.


Stéphanie Flora M. Capdeville Member

Stéphanie has joined the Green for Growth Fund Board, as an Independent Director proposed by the International Finance Corporation (IFC) in June 2020. She has served as a Board member in several NGOs, such as the French Association of Climate Consultancies (APCC) and Greenpeace España.

With a robust background in Capital Markets derivatives (Soc Gen) in the 90’s, then early steps of Sustainable Investment in Europe (SAM Sustainable Asset Management / Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes / Robeco and Triodos Bank), Stéphanie has been introduced to carbon trading & Renewable Energy and Forestry projects portfolio risk management, during first phase of Kyoto Protocol (Ecofys / Vitol).

Following reshape of carbon markets to climate finance, Stéphanie had the chance to support the Republic of Gabon climate strategy & policy for 3 years, including enrolment of key financial institutions (Sovereign Fund FGIS & Caisse des Dépôts et Consignations CDC), and building the country framework with the Green Climate Fund (GCF), which she then joined from 2016 to 2018 as Africa Regional Adviser to provide similar services across the continent.

In parallel to Board member activities, Stéphanie is a Partner of a Gabonese consultancy AIC Tax & Legal and thus still brings expertise to many key institutions across Sub-Saharan Africa (Development Bank of Central Africa BDEAC, National Sustainable Development Fund FNDS of Mozambique, Fiduciary Agency of Sao Tomé e Principe Ministry of Finance AFAP, United Cities and Local Governments of Africa CGLU and Common Market of Eastern and Southern Africa COMESA) in defining their green finance strategy and engagement vis-à-vis the GCF.

Stéphanie holds a MBA from “Ecole Supérieure des Sciences Economiques et Commerciales”, France.


REINHOLD STRAUSS MEMBER

Reinhold Strauss is currently engaged in freelance activities for consulting companies and development banks. He previously worked for the German Development Bank, KfW, in multiple capacities, heading country teams for East Asia and Pacific, Turkey and Western Balkans, and Europe/ the Caucasus. At KfW, he has also served as the Division Chief for general policy issues of German financial cooperation, dealing with multiple German ministries, the German Parliament and international regulatory bodies such as OECD.

Reinhold has been a member of the Green for Growth Fund Board of Directors since 2022. 

He holds a diploma in Geography from Technical University of Munich, and a diploma in International Studies from School of Advanced International Studies at the Johns Hopkins University, Bologna Center in Bologna.


Birthe Bruhn-Léon Member

Birthe is a senior executive with over 32 years of experience in private and public banking, specializing in climate and impact financing. She has extensive experience structuring and governing financial products, mandates and funds to support small and medium-sized enterprises, innovation, and the energy transition. 

From 2022 to 2024, she led the creation of the European Investment Bank´s (EIB) Financial Institutions Department, overseeing financing operations with private sector intermediaries, focusing on SMEs & Midcaps, renewable energy, energy efficiency and green transport projects. She led her teams to develop green lending initiatives, including green loans, green bonds, green securitization, and risk-sharing guarantees under the EU Wind Power Action Plan, closely combined with advisory and technical assistance services.

Previously, she directed EIB´s lending operations in Spain and Portugal (2015-2021), driving strong climate and innovation impact through lending, project finance and blended finance solutions. She also led EIB´s Business Support Department (2012-2015) and held credit and governance roles in EIB´s risk management. At the European Investment Fund, she led the creation of EIB Group´s first-ever mandate development and management function, including strategy formation, design and negotiation of European Commission-sponsored guarantee mandates and debt funds for competitiveness, SMEs, microfinance, innovation and capacity building, as well as the setup of the implementing framework (policies, IT tools and impact methodology).

Her earlier career includes 12 years at Deutsche Bank in structured finance and international business roles at its investment bank arm, and additional institutional and corporate experience in Belgium, Spain, Portugal, and Mexico.

Birthe holds a degree in International Economics and Finance from the University of Passau, Germany, and is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA). 


Dana Kupova Member

Dana Kupovais Head of Inclusive Finance at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). Dana has 20 years of experience in defining and executing strategies in climate and ESG across sectors, financial instruments, and geographies, with a particular focus on emerging markets. Between 2011 and 2018, she served in the Energy Efficiency and Climate Change Department at EBRD, leading climate change and resilience due diligence in corporate sector projects and overseeing green/climate engagement in agribusiness. This was followed with 7 years in Financial Institutions Group of the EBRD, focusing on greening financial systems, addressing climate risks, and promoting green financial products. 

Ms. Kupova holds an Executive Global MBA from Manchester Business School and an MSc in Engineering from Brno University of Technology. She has also completed various leadership and technical training programs, including the European Women on Boards C-suite training.


Dirk Roos Member

Dirk heads a team of energy specialists at the European Investment Bank (EIB), providing advisory and due diligence services to the EIB’s energy operations and EIF infrastructure funds. He has over 15 years of experience including project finance, infrastructure/climate funds, equity co-investments, RE/EE credit lines with financial institutions and set up of dedicated RE/EE investment vehicles and technical assistance programmes. Before joining EIB, Dirk spent 10 years working for an international environmental engineering consultancy in Brussels and 2 years with UNDP in South Africa. He holds a  Engineer Masters in Mining from the KU Leuven, Belgium and in Oil&Gas from IFP-School, France. He has additionally an Executive MBA from Cambridge, UK.