BlueOrchard was founded in 2001, by initiative of the UN, as the first commercial manager of microfinance debt investments worldwide. The company has evolved into a leading global impact investment manager, offering impact investment solutions across asset classes. The BlueOrchard Microfinance Fund is the world’s first and largest commercial microfinance fund with USD 2.5bn AuM. BlueOrchard has also branched out into new asset classes such as Private Equity and Sustainable Infrastructure, leveraging its unique expertise in emerging markets and a long-standing core commitment to responsible development. As a professional investment manager and expert in innovative blended finance mandates, BlueOrchard has a sophisticated international investor base and is a trusted partner of leading global development finance institutions. Its multinational and diverse employee base is located mainly in emerging and frontier markets, with deep local expertise and maintaining extensive networks in the respective regions. Since 2019, BlueOrchard has been a member of the Schroders Group and is sharing and contributing to its objective to deliver positive outcomes for all.
Peter Fanconi, Chairman of the Board of BlueOrchard, said: “Since inception, BlueOrchard has successfully balanced generating lasting impact alongside attractive financial returns, proving that these can go hand in hand. It has been an incredible journey and we look forward to the next 20 years. We thank our partners globally for their continued trust in BlueOrchard.”
Philipp Mueller, CEO of BlueOrchard, said: “For two decades it has been BlueOrchard’s mission and vision to make impact investment solutions accessible to all and to advance the conscious use of capital which benefits society and the environment. We will continue on this path and meet investors’ demand for innovative and truly impactful strategies.”
Peter Harrison, Group Chief Executive Officer, Schroders, commented: “BlueOrchard is a wholly purpose driven organisation, and its work in microfinance and with development agencies has provided investors with robust financial returns but, most importantly, BlueOrchard has also demonstrably benefitted millions of people in emerging markets over the past two decades.”
“Impact investing is now a mega trend but BlueOrchard has been pioneer in this field for 20 years. Schroders, a similar purpose driven organisation, is proud to work so closely with BlueOrchard and we are looking forward to collaborating as specialist impact-focused investors for another 20 years and beyond.”
In celebration of its 20th anniversary, BlueOrchard, working together with National Geographic, has published the book “This Is My Story – Giving a Face to 20 Years of Impact Investing”, sharing some of the entrepreneurial stories, personal dreams and insights into the lives of families around the globe who are struggling and fighting against adversity every single day.
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About BlueOrchard Finance Ltd
BlueOrchard is a leading global impact investment manager and member of the Schroders Group. As a pioneering impact investor, the firm is dedicated to generating lasting positive impact for communities and the environment, while providing attractive returns to investors. BlueOrchard was founded in 2001, by initiative of the UN, as the first commercial manager of microfinance debt investments worldwide. Today, the firm offers impact investment solutions across asset classes, connecting millions of entrepreneurs in emerging and frontier markets with investors with the aim to make impact investment solutions accessible to all and to advance the conscious use of capital. Being a professional investment manager and expert in innovative blended finance mandates, BlueOrchard has a sophisticated international investor base and is a trusted partner of leading global development finance institutions. To date, BlueOrchard has invested more than USD 8bn across more than 90 countries. Over 215mn poor and vulnerable people in emerging and frontier markets received access to financial and related services with the support of BlueOrchard as of December 2020. For additional information, please visit: www.blueorchard.com.
About Schroders
As a global active asset manager, the way we direct capital not only shapes the financial returns we achieve but also the type of impact we have on the world. The relationship between these two outcomes has rapidly evolved as we see a fundamental shift in how companies are viewed and valued. Understanding the impact that they have on society and the planet is crucial in determining their true costs and ultimately their impact adjusted profits.
Our ongoing success is built on a history of experience and expertise, whereby we partner with our clients to construct innovative products and solutions across our five business areas consisting of Private Assets & Alternatives, Solutions, Mutual Funds, Institutional and Wealth Management and invest in a wide range of assets and geographies. By combining our commitment to active management and focus on sustainability, our strategic capabilities are designed to deliver positive outcomes for our clients.
We are responsible for £574.4 billion (€641.7 billion/$785.1 billion)* assets of our clients, managed locally by 42 investment teams worldwide. As a global business with over 5,500 talented staff across 35 locations, we are able to stay close to our clients and understand their needs. We have over 200 years of experience in investment and innovation and remain committed to creating a better future by investing responsibly for our clients.
Further information about Schroders can be found at www.schroders.com. Registration No 1893220 England. Authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. For regular updates by e-mail please register online at www.schroders.com for our alerting service.
*as at 31 December 2020
For further information, please contact:
Tahmina Theis
+41 22 596 47 69
tahmina.theis@blueorchard.com
www.blueorchard.com
Disclaimer:
The information in this document was produced by BlueOrchard Finance Ltd (“BOF”) to the best of its present knowledge and belief. However, all data and financial information provided is on an unaudited and “as is” basis. The opinions expressed in this document are those of BOF and its employees and are subject to change at any time without notice. BOF provides no guarantee with regard to the accuracy and completeness of the content in this document and BOF does not under any circumstance, accept liability for any losses or damages which may arise from making use of, or relying upon any information, content or opinion provided by BOF in this document. This document may contain references or links to other documents and websites and BOF has not reviewed such other documents and websites and is not responsible in any way in relation to the content of such documents and websites.
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