Rothschild & Co launches a Social Impact Investment Fund

Rothschild & Co Asset Management Europe has added a new sub-fund, R-co 4Change Impact Finance, for the financing of microfinance institutions in Emerging countries, to its Luxembourg-based UCITS R-co Investments.

This fund is the result of a unique partnership with Symbiotics, a company that has specialised in sustainable and inclusive finance for over 15 years, and to which management is delegated. It invests mainly in medium-sized Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) to maximise social impact.

With this new fund, Rothschild & Co aims to strengthen its support for populations generally excluded from traditional bank financing while offering investors an investment that combines financial performance and social impact, with a weak correlation to traditional asset classes.

Rothschild & Co is taking this approach a step further by sharing part of the management costs with the EPIC Foundation, which fights against inequalities affecting youth and provides the necessary resources for social organisations that have a worldwide impact (education, healthcare and child protection).

With this new support, Rothschild & Co is launching its new “4Change” range, dedicated to economic, social and environmental issues. “Since its creation, Symbiotics has already granted more than 5,000 loans to microfinance institutions. By joining forces with this major player, we are helping to promote financial inclusion across Emerging countries and Frontier markets.” says Marc Romano, General Partner of Rothschild & Co Asset Management Europe. "This new vehicle complements Rothschild & Co's recent climate initiatives and marks a step forward in our commitment to ESG and Sustainable Development Goals.”, adds Marc Romano.

Rothschild & Co Asset Management Europe is distributing this fund in France, Luxembourg as well as in Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany. (see table below).