Social Investment Review in Europe

One of the biggest challenges in making renewable energy projects sustainable is securing the right kind of investment.

These projects often require patient capital and realistic rates of return to give local markets in developing countries time to mature and develop.

Social entrepreneurs who wish to make such projects a reality face a significant challenge in finding such investment. Funds created for technologies and renewable energies, even in developing countries, typically have market rates of return 15% +, meaning that even the best meaning socially responsible fund can be out of reach to a social entrepreneur with a high impact project.

In order to gain a better understanding of the investment opportunities for such social projects, Canopus conducted a review among social investors in Europe.

The scope of the review included:

• Emerging sectors of social investments in Europe
• Social investment instruments for private equity
• Social investment instruments and strategies with a focus on foreign direct investments (investment strategies in developing countries)

This review was the first attempt at mapping out the social investment market in Europe. It was aimed to stimulate interest in social investments.