London, June 2nd, 2016

MainStreet Partners is pleased to announce the official launch of the Sustainable Finance Fund, the first listed equity fund to invest in banks providing financial services to micro-small-medium enterprises in the developing countries.

Financial inclusion is universally recognised as a key driver of sustainable economic development, and MainStreet Partners has identified the 30 leading financial institutions that serve under-banked clients (such as micro-entrepreneurs, SMEs, and low income people) in Asia, Latin America, and Sub-Saharan Africa to invest in their equity capital and support their growth. Each bank shows an impressive combination of solid financial returns and positive social impact thanks to an effective focus on the core business: raising capital via deposits and lend it to local businesses and communities in high growth and under penetrated markets.

To kick start operations and reach scale in the selection and execution of the investments, MainStreet Partners has partnered with Quadrivio Capital – a leading European private equity firm – and Pictet Group – a leading global private bank and fund manager.
MainStreet and Quadrivio have been managing the predecessor fund – Microfinanza 1 – for over 5 years having invested (directly and indirectly) in over 200 unlisted microfinance institutions across 30 countries, today serving over 1 million micro-entrepreneurs globally. Microfinanza 1 provided the first 10 mln Eur investment to seed the Sustainable Finance Fund which aims to raise up to 200 mln in the next two years.