SVX Colombia launches to mobilize capital for women, climate action, and rural development

$4 million investment from Government of Canada aimed at catalyzing impact investing market for natural ecosystems, sustainable livelihoods, and economic well-being

For immediate release / SVX Canada / SVX Colombia

BOGOTA, January 31, 2023 — Today, a cross-sectoral and multi-national partnership officially launched SVX Colombia to help mobilize millions in capital for women-led or women-serving enterprises in vulnerable communities, climate action and biodiversity, and rural development in Colombia. This announcement was the result of a five (5) year journey of partnership building jointly led by SVX Canada and SVX Mexico with the support of Global Affairs Canada (GAC) and the engagement of national leaders in Colombia.

SVX Colombia’s core initiative will be the Programa de Apoyo a la Inversión de Impacto en Colombia (PAIIC). PAIIC is an investment readiness program that will provide grant capital and capacity support for Colombian businesses, cooperatives, associations, non-for-profit organizations, and funds seeking to start or scale their businesses and social impact, with a particular focus on rural regions, women-led or women serving enterprises, and initiatives advancing biodiversity and nature-based solutions.

The program will also connect enterprises and funds with investment capital from private and public sources, with the goal of mobilizing at least $10 million in capital towards more inclusive and impactful development. The first set of initiatives through the program include a fund accelerator and an enterprise accelerator program, with participants in both programs announced today.

Impact investing is an important tool to help tackle parallel and pressing social, economic, and environmental challenges in Colombia. There are structural, long-standing challenges: inequality, peace and reconciliation, rural development, food security, climate and biodiversity. In 2020, poverty rates in rural areas were 1.5 times higher than in urban areas, while extreme poverty rates were three (3) times higher. The pandemic further exacerbated these challenges. In particular, women, rural regions, and Indigenous communities have faced the most severe social and economic impacts of these crises. Alongside peers around the world, Colombia is seeking to leverage impact investing as an additional tool to address these challenges and to advance sustainable development.

Colombia’s impact investing sector is vibrant and poised to scale. The most recent data from the National Advisory Board (NAB) on impact investing reported that there is $473 million USD in impact investments in the country. Nonetheless, there is a need to invest in both the systems infrastructure and directly in impact investing funds, organizations and enterprises to help this sector thrive. Although impact enterprises have the potential to transform local economies into true engines of sustainable and inclusive growth, investment levels remain limited for the needs of rural and post-conflict communities. To be successful, impact enterprises need a well-resourced, connected and high capacity ecosystem of investors, accelerators, incubators, and service providers. While a number of these actors are present in Colombia, there is a recognized need to support and scale up this ecosystem. Further, the impact investing ecosystem, from enterprises to investors, needs to be gender sensitive and eco responsible for sustainable and inclusive growth.

This project is funded by a $4 million contribution from the Government of Canada over four (4) years. SVX Colombia is led by a local team in collaboration with SVX Canada and SVX Mexico, and supported by local partners and advisors including Innpactia, Azai Consultores, the National Advisory Board (NAB) on Impact Investing, and many others.

Quick Facts

• The most recent data from the National Advisory Board (NAB) on impact investing in Colombia reported that there is $473M USD in impact investments in the country.
• SVX was first conceived in 2007, and now has partners and operations across Canada, the United States, and Mexico. SVX has been engaged in Colombia since 2018.
• The Government of Canada is contributing $4 million towards this initiative.
• Ten (10) Colombian impact investing funds will be participating in the first fund accelerator program.
• Four (4) Colombian enterprise accelerator programs will be supported by the program.

Quotes

“Canada has been an active supporter of impact investing in Colombia for over five years through market building and supporting the development and creation of the National Advisory Board (NAB) on Impact Investing. We are proud to work with our colleagues at SVX alongside Colombian market leaders to help catalyze impact investing with the view to transform communities by supporting its entrepreneurs, in particular women, in growing their impact enterprises and creating jobs.”
— Marianick Tremblay, Canadian Ambassador to Colombia

“Beyond the capital mobilized, we hope that this work will help to achieve our ultimate and shared goal: restored ecosystems and improved sustainable livelihoods and economic well-being, particularly for women, their families and their communities, in rural regions of Colombia.”
— Paula Delgadillo, Project Director, SVX Colombia

“There is a movement towards impact investing and social enterprise as a critical component of a development strategy. These approaches support more resilient economic and social development, they seek to leverage capital from new sources including investment funds, foundations, development financial institutions and others. This approach can complement, but not replace, support for health, education and core infrastructure from national governments.”
— Adam Spence, CEO, SVX Canada

“SVX Mexico is looking forward to bringing our experience and expertise in Latin America, particularly in gender equality and investing, to this project. The need and the potential for growth are great, and impact investing can play a key role in regenerating natural ecosystems and improving community well-being.”
— Stevie Smyth, Executive Director, SVX Mexico

“Campo Capital is pleased to be selected as a participant in the SVX Colombia Fund Accelerator Program. We are looking forward to learning alongside our peers on how to continue building our movement towards mobilizing capital for economic, social, and environmental impact in our communities.”
— Paula Sanchez, Socia — Fundadora y Gerente General, Campo Capital

“Social enterprises have the potential to transform local economies into true engines of sustainable and inclusive growth. As an accelerator program that is focused on solving some of our region’s biggest challenges, the support we receive through the SVX Colombia Enterprise Accelerator Program will help us grow our work in boosting Colombia’s most innovative social enterprises.”
— Gabriel Arango, Lider En-Campo, Fundación Grupo Bancolombia

About Programa de Apoyo a la Inversión de Impacto en Colombia (PAIIC)

Programa de Apoyo a la Inversión de Impacto en Colombia (PAIIC) is an impact investing ecosystem support program that provides both capital and capacity supports for enterprises, organizations and funds seeking to start or scale their impact, particularly focused on rural regions in Colombia, women, and climate action. This impact investing infrastructure program seeks to leverage and support the work of existing stakeholders while tactically filling market gaps in capital, capacity and network development with resources and new programs. This program has been designed and led by SVX in collaboration with ecosystem partners.

The core program will be implemented through:

• Support Programs: Hands-on capacity building support to impact enterprises, organizations, projects, intermediaries and investors.
• Granting Streams: Grant funding to enterprises, organizations, funds, and capacity building organizations including an innovative finance grant program, accelerator grant program, and enterprise grant program.
• Partners: The program will have both core and delivery partners to ensure successful program delivery.

For more information, please visit: https://svxcolombia.com/

About SVX

SVX is a nonprofit, diversified financial services firm driving impact for investors, organizations, funds, and enterprises. We provide knowledge and insights, advisory solutions, fund solutions, an investment platform and services for investors, and systems change solutions. We work across sectors that deliver meaningful impact: climate action, health, education, food, equity, housing and impact real estate, helping investors find and make impact investments and issuers raise impact capital.

We work with issuers from place-based impact investing funds to community power co-operatives producing renewable energy to charitable organizations tackling mental health and addictions. We work with all investors, from foundations and family offices to everyday investors, to help them identify opportunities and to support their decision-making efforts so they can match their money with meaning.

SVX is regulated by the Ontario Securities Commission and is registered as an Exempt Market Dealer (EMD) in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario and Québec. We have partners and operations across Canada, as well as in the US, Mexico, and Colombia. For more information about SVX, please visit: https://www.svx.ca/

Media Contacts

Helen Zhou, SVX
helen.zhou@svx.ca

Adam Spence, SVX
adam.spence@svx.ca
647–242–4644

Paula Delgadillo, SVX
paula.delgadillo@svx.ca

Photo by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash

Backgrounder

What is impact investing?

Impact investing includes investments, “…made into companies, organizations, and funds with the intention to generate a measurable, beneficial social or environmental impact alongside a financial return.”​ This may range from private equity funds focused on sustainable food to affordable housing bonds.

Quick Facts

• The most recent data from the National Advisory Board (NAB) on impact investing in Colombia reported that there is $473M USD in impact investments in the country.
• SVX was first conceived in 2007, and now has partners and operations across Canada, the United States, and Mexico. SVX has been engaged in Colombia since 2018.
• The Government of Canada is contributing $4 million towards this initiative.
• Ten (10) Colombian impact investing funds will be participating in the first fund accelerator program.
• Four (4) Colombian enterprise accelerator programs will be supported by the program.

Fund Accelerator Program

The Fund Accelerator is a capacity-building program providing technical knowledge, advice, and peer support, for innovative funds and funds developing emergent strategies in Colombia focused on rural regions, women, and climate action.

Participants

1. Campo Capital Impact Fund — Campo Capital
2. Empodera Impact Capital — New Ventures Capital
3. Fondo Progreso, impacto para las regiones — Fondo Progreso
4. Fondo de Inversión de Impacto II Inversor en Colombia y Otros Países Latam — Inversor
5. Fondo Semilla PeaceStartup 2.0 — PeaceStartup Foundation
6. Pantera 4i: Investment / Impact / Innovation / Inclusion — Pantera Makers
7. Fondo de Inversión Impacta: Generación de crecimiento, reducción de pobreza y preservación del medio ambiente — Universidad EAN
8. Fondo Blooming Roots — AMPLO Inversión de Impacto
9. Fondo de Impacto Bictia — Fundación para el fomento de la nueva Economía — BICTIA
10. Fondo Impacta EM_TECH: Acelerando la reactivación y la competitividad de la mujer en la tecnología — Corporación Incubadora y Aceleradora de Empresas de Base Tecnológica de Manizales

About

Campo Capital Impact Fund — Campo Capital
Campo Capital is an investment managing company dedicated to the agroforestry sector in Latin America founded in Colombia in September 2010. Campo Capital structures and provide management services, environmental services through sustainable solutions, and advisory services for the sector. The company has managed approximately $65 million in assets across more than 10,000 rural hectares, and has verified nearly 500,000 carbon credits under the VERRA VCS standard. Additionally, Campo Capital is structuring a private equity fund: Campo Capital Impact Fund, in order to identify, select and finance nature-based investments with high environmental, social and economic impact in rural Colombian areas.
Campo Capital has experience in various areas of the agroforestry sector: Forestry, nature-based solutions, native fruits, commodities (cocoa and coffee), bioenergy, aromatic herbs, cereals, among others. For Campo Capital, it is extremely important to contribute to the achievement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals in the projects it executes and structures. In 2022, he obtained the award given by the renowned British media Environmental Finance as the Best Boutique Investment Manager in the Americas.

Empodera Impact Capital — New Ventures Capital
Empodera Impact Capital is a 15 MM pioneer impact investment vehicle that supports early to growth stage gender smart health enterprises in Latam. EIC offers revenue-based financing and venture debt catalytic capital, for mission driven health entrepreneurs in the region. Overall, EIC aims to improve access to and quality of health services for 2+ million underserved women in LatAm, while diminishing the 93 billion funding gap for women-owned businesses, catalyzing the impact of the women’s health enterprise sector in LatAm.

Fondo Progreso, impacto para las regiones — Fondo Progreso
FONDO PROGRESO was created from the strategic union between the Corporación Alianza 2030 para el progreso and two co-managers with prestige and experience in the structuring and administration of impact investment funds ATHENA and ASIRI.
Our objective is to give access to investment resources in Colombian non-main cities and rural regions. One of its main models is the results based financing payments, for projects that reflect competitive advantages.
The investment thesis is mainly based on Investing in projects that have contracts or future purchase commitments, in the areas of agriculture, recycling, energy, water purification, health and education.

Fondo de Inversión de Impacto II Inversor en Colombia y Otros Países Latam — Inversor
Invesor is a non-profit organization created by 13 recognized entities in Colombia, which accompanies and generates value for Investors and allies in the development and implementation of initiatives with high economic, social and environmental impact.
With more than 12 years experience, Inversor is a benchmark in Impact Investment, managing the First Impact Fund in Colombia and being a pioneer in managing results-based financing payment and Social Impact Bonds on training for employment and education. quality

Fondo Semilla PeaceStartup 2.0 — PeaceStartup Foundation
We are an organization that, through alliances and a diverse and multidisciplinary team, manages funds, accelerates companies, ventures, and initiatives so that they are part of the solution to the challenges of peace, justice, and sustainable development in rural areas or areas far from the main urban centers.

Pantera 4i: Investment / Impact / Innovation / Inclusion — Pantera Makers
Pantera Makers is an accelerator in Colombia with an impact in LATAM focused on SCALING, PRESERVING AND CONNECTING the entrepreneurial ecosystem in the region.
Within the Preserve vertical has been built the Pantera 4i; a model that seeks to promote impact, investment, innovation and inclusion based on the strengthening and scaling of startups in Colombia that solve social and environmental problems from and for emerging and sustainable cities, thus decentralizing investment in the region at the same time that we act in the field knowing the realities and needs of the most disconnected ecosystems. To achieve this, Pantera Makers is in the process of structuring its first impact investment fund: Fondo Frailejón, with an estimated size of 1.7M USD and a 100% focus on Colombia.

Fondo de Inversión Impacta: Generación de crecimiento, reducción de pobreza y preservación del medio ambiente — Universidad EAN
At Fondo Impacta, we seek to accompany and finance sustainable business models with high growth potential, and are part of the sustainable entrepreneurship platform — IMPACTA, where these types of solutions that impact the climate and social crisis are created, transformed and financed. Impacta corresponds to a process of evolution and transformation of more than 10 years at EAN University and the fund is managed by the Fundación para el Emprendimiento Impacta. As a team we are convinced that the consolidation of the ecosystem and a community of sustainable entrepreneurs are the answer to address and materialize actions aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals, seeking the inclusion of communities, strengthening of territories, gender equality, and climate solutions.

Fondo Blooming Roots — AMPLO Inversión de Impacto
AMPLO’s objective is to contribute to the reactivation of the business fabric of Providencia and Santa Catalina, strengthening the offer of products and services in tourism, commerce and agribusiness companies that were operating before Hurricane IOTA. The Fund was created at the request of Bancoldex as an initial investor (subsequently supported by UNDP), in which the proposal was co-managed by AMPLO (Impact Investment Banking in Colombia) and Grassroots Business Fund (an international organization born from the IFC a few years ago) was chosen. 15+ years), with a Revenue-Based Financing model. The Fund has two “pockets”: (1) Direct investment in companies that operate or strengthen the business and social infrastructure, (2) Accompaniment and non-reimbursable technical assistance to strengthen the skills and abilities of entrepreneurs in back processes -office, finance, commercial and service, integration with value chains, among others.

Fondo de Impacto Bictia — Fundación para el fomento de la nueva Economía — BICTIA
“Bogota’s Information and Communication Technologies Incubator and Accelerator” — BICTIA, is an accelerator for early-stage enterprises, whose objective is to contribute to the economic development of the country, promoting entrepreneurship.
Its main allies ProBogotá Región, Oslo International Hub, entities with extensive experience in supporting entrepreneurs, have a network of highly recognized mentors and also lead the Norwegian Investor Angel Network; and the Norwegian Agency for the Promotion of Development -NORAD-, a Norwegian Government entity that provides operating and investment resources.
We are currently structuring our BICTIA Smart Cities fund, which seeks to finance initiatives associated with sustainability and efficiency criteria in the city.

Fondo Impacta EM_TECH: Acelerando la reactivación y la competitividad de la mujer en la tecnología — Corporación Incubadora y Aceleradora de Empresas de Base Tecnológica de Manizales
For the last 20 years, Incubar has been in the Caldas, accompanying technology-based enterprises through incubation and acceleration programs, managing to impact more than 1,030 entrepreneurs. In 2019, through a call from the Sistema General de Regalias, it participates in alliance with the Universidad de Manizales and the Universidad Católica to devise, create, develop and launch the first Startup Factory focused on technology-based enterprises.
Additionally, Incubar is working in the structure of the fund “Impacta Em_Tech: Accelerating the reactivation and competitiveness of women in technology”, which seeks to encourage the participation of women with technology-based ventures or female leadership teams. willing to carry out innovation processes and establish a win-win relationship with the ecosystem.

Enterprise Accelerator Program

The Enterprise Accelerator Support program features grant support and targeted assistance for local accelerator organizations throughout Colombia that accelerate impact enterprises focused on rural regions, women, and climate action.

Participants

• Emprender Mujer IHMed — Impact Hub Medellín
• Aceleradora de Impacto Connect ClimateTech — Connect Bogotá Región
• Aceleradora de Emprendimientos Sociales: EmprendeVerde — Corporación Universitaria Minuto de Dios — UNIMINUTO
• En-Campo: Negocios que comparten valor — Fundación Grupo Bancolombia

About

The Impact Hub Medellín
Impact Hub is a global entrepreneurship and innovation network focused on promoting entrepreneurship with an impact on Sustainable Development Goals. We have entrepreneurship support programs and processes from ideation to international scaling, where we seek to guide entrepreneurs in strengthening their business models and impact model in order to generate and demonstrate traceability of impact on the SDGs.

EmprendeVerde — Uniminuto
EMPRENDEVERDE, a social accelerator created by the Unidad de Alojamiento e Incubación en el Parque Científico de Innovación Social (PCIS) de la Corporación Universitaria Minuto de Dios/UNIMINUTO, whose mission is to contribute to improving the quality of life in rural Colombia and vulnerable persons in urban regions. This acceleration program does this by building capacity with entrepreneurs using a methodology called social entrepreneurship route that advances: 1. improvement of the social, environmental and business economics. 2. Growth in revenues. 3. Preparation to raise capital with impact investors.

En-Campo
En-Campo is the Business Strengthening and Acceleration Program of Fundación Bancolombia and Grupo Bancolombia. Their purpose is to promote and consolidate businesses with a rural impact that contribute to boosting the competitiveness and sustainability of their territories and have a direct and positive impact on the quality of life of families and rural businesses.
This program was born in 2019 and since then four (4) calls have been launched to which 1,547 organizations from all over Colombia have applied, of which 215 have been strengthened and accelerated through an innovative methodology aimed at maximizing positive impact, sustainability and competitiveness. Additionally, 13 high-impact projects are being financed with a hybrid mechanism that combines reimbursable and non-reimbursable resources. Over the next quarter, six (6) new enterprises from cohort three will receive financing.
En-Campo is possible thanks to their allies: Impact Hub Medellín, Baobab, Amplo, Portafolio Verde, Comfama, Grupo Argos, Grupo Nutresa and Industrias Haceb

ClimateTech
Connect is one of the largest and most important innovation and entrepreneurship networks in Colombia. They connect entrepreneurs, universities, companies and the government to transform ourselves into a more innovative, competitive and sustainable region and country. They have 60 members between universities and public and private organizations who work collaboratively to accelerate innovation, increase competitiveness and quality of life. The powerful network that they have built, the experience and knowledge acquired over time, the high-impact local and global connection, as well as a unique model that covers the entire value chain: from entrepreneurship to transfer, is what makes them different.

The Connect ClimateTech Springboard Multi-Corporate Accelerator focuses on solving big problems for industries and our planet, uniting the best startups, large companies and impact investors. Through this, solutions will be sought that prioritize science and technology to solve the challenges of our planet in decarbonization, energy transition, circular economy and bioeconomy to accelerate its growth together with large (corporate) companies, with whom they will be able to develop pilots to explore different collaboration alternatives such as access to financing or investment, strategic alliances, and co-developments; among others.