Madrid, April 24, 2025. The Social Impact Fund (FIS), attached to the Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration and managed by COFIDES, has committed an investment of €30M in the IB Deuda Impacto España, FESE fund, managed by Impact Bridge Asset Management, a Spanish fund manager specializing in impact investing.
The entry of FIS will facilitate the addition of new investors, reinforcing the fund's role as a strategic investor alongside the European Investment Fund (EIF).
IB Deuda Impacto España is a closed-end private debt fund aimed primarily at SMEs with social and environmental impact in Spain and Portugal. The fund’s aim is to finance companies focused on challenges such as rural development, inclusion of vulnerable groups, gender equality, ecological transition, energy efficiency, sustainable agriculture and the circular economy. With a target size of €150M, it is the first and only Spanish debt impact fund with these characteristics. Its purpose is to facilitate access to alternative financing for impact companies, which is key to their growth.
With this investment, FIS strengthens its commitment with the promotion of a more inclusive, fair and sustainable economic model through financial instruments focused on real and measurable impact.
Ángela Pérez, COFIDES chairperson and CEO, and María Samoilova, managing partner of Impact Bridge and head of the fund, have signed the subscription agreement whereby the FIS commits to investing up to €30M in the fund. Likewise, this investment includes a technical assistance line of €100k, which will be available to funded companies that need training in "social purchasing", i.e., responsible and impactful sourcing and procurement practices.
Ángela Pérez pointed out that "FIS's investment in IB Deuda Impacto España is a very important measure in the fund's strategy to promote innovative financial solutions and, above all, additional to the traditional financial market that allow it to respond adequately to the needs of impact companies. We also hope that this operation will contribute to attract new investor profiles to the impact ecosystem, thus expanding its reach and multiplying its transformational capacity."
Maria Samoilova stated: "The COFIDES trust and support is a great boost for Impact Bridge in our mission to finance projects with actual and sustainable impact. FIS and we share a clear vision of the importance of mobilizing capital for initiatives that generate positive and lasting change. This investment reinforces our ability to identify and support transformative projects, and demonstrates the value of strategic alliances committed to sustainable development."
So far, the fund has already completed several investments in companies such as ILUNION Hotels, which employs people with disabilities, enabling them to participate in the labor market with a decent job in an inclusive environment; Fundeen, the leading energy transition crowdfunding platform in Spain, which facilitates citizen participation in renewable energy projects; Moda re-, an initiative created to employ people at high risk of exclusion that gives a new life to textile waste through the collection, reuse, recycling, social donation and sale of clothes; and Talento y Experiencia (TyE), which employs and trains people with disabilities in industrial processes.
ABOUT SOCIAL IMPACT FUND (FIS)
The FIS is a fund created by the Government through the addendum to the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan (PRTR, by its acronym in Spanish) and has resources from the NextGenerationEU instrument. It is a public financial instrument assigned to the Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration that aims to strengthen our impact ecosystem by supporting investment projects carried out by companies and other entities in Spain that generate a positive and measurable social and/or environmental impact.
With a budget of €400M, it offers financial support to projects that are financially sustainable, and which contribute to responding to insufficiently addressed social and environmental challenges, also promoting the mobilization of additional private resources.
ABOUT IMPACT BRIDGE ASSET MANAGEMENT
Established in 2018, Impact Bridge is a Spanish fund manager that handles over €400M and specialized in impact investing and focused on projects generating authentic, intentional and measurable impact. As a Collective Investment Management Company (SGIIC), it is regulated by the CNMV. Its team is comprised by professionals with extensive experience in leading financial institutions. Its investor base is made up of private institutional investors, such as pension funds, foundations and family offices, and public investors, such as the European Investment Fund, CDTI, COFIDES and Axis (ICO).
ABOUT COFIDES
COFIDES is a state-owned trading company that manages state funds, as well as its own resources and those of third-party institutions. COFIDES's mission is to support the internationalization of the Spanish economy, attract foreign investment into strategic sectors in Spain, promote the impact economy, and contribute to global economic development. COFIDES is also instrumental in strengthening the solvency of Spanish companies, particularly in response to challenges such as the COVID-19 pandemic. COFIDES’s shareholders include the Spanish State, Banco Santander, Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (BBVA), Banco Sabadell, and CAF-Development Bank of Latin America.
ABOUT ‘IB DEUDA IMPACTO ESPAÑA’
Launched in July 2023 with the support of MicroBank, 'IB Deuda Impacto España' is a flexible private debt fund, focused on capital preservation that aims to finance social and environmental impact projects in Spain. Its focus encompasses rural development, labor inclusion, climate and environment, circular economy, sustainable agriculture and gender equality.
The fund is supported by major institutional investors such as the European Investment Fund (EIF), MicroBank, Axis Participaciones (ICO Group), COFIDES and other players in the financial sector. With a seven-year background, including three years of investment and four years of harvesting, it is registered in Spain by the CNMV as a European Social Entrepreneurship Fund (FESE) and complies with the highest category of sustainability (article 9 of the SFDR regulations). Impact Bridge has been backed by the EIF through its Alternative Lending for Sustainable Development Facility under Spain's Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan.
