29 posts found.
Selected Category: Sustainability
“Among the best-performing organisations”– external review of Finnfund’s Human Rights Statement and its implementation is ready
“The review provides us a valuable analysis, recommendations, and second opinion both by experienced consultants and our stakeholders. It does not only provide us information on where we are currently standing at in terms of our path to implement our human rights approach but also gives us recommendations to move forward and further improve our […]
Read moreFebruary 14, 2022
We are biodiversity
Biodiversity has risen to the current sustainability discussions alongside climate change mitigation and climate change adaptation. It is increasingly clear that biodiversity risks are material and relevant to businesses both in developing countries and in the developed world. In early 2021, The Economics of Biodiversity: The Das Gupta Review underlined our dependence on the natural […]
Read moreJanuary 12, 2022
Client protection in microfinancing is part of financial inclusion
Microcredit and microfinance refer to very small loans for individuals or micro-businesses. In some context, it refers to other services as well such as micro-insurance, micro-pensions, micro-leasing, and even micro-savings. More importantly, it is about providing access to formal financing and participation for people in need of money to set up or expand their businesses. […]
Read moreDecember 22, 2021
Learning to understand (and manage) climate risks
Floods, typhoons and tornados, forest fires, drought, and extreme heat. Extreme weather conditions have become part of our daily news. As the drastic effects of climate change become more evident, financiers, such as Finnfund, must learn to understand and live with the risks. Understanding the climate risks is particularly important because nearly all our portfolio […]
Read moreDecember 15, 2021
Finnfund reviews the implementation of its Human Rights Statement
At the beginning of 2019, Finnfund introduced a Human Rights Statement to guide our work in respecting and promoting human rights in all our operations. The statement is based on the key principle that as a development financier and impact investor, human rights are at the very core of our work. Finnfund is now reviewing […]
Read moreSeptember 24, 2021
Discovering outcomes in gender-lens investing
By Juho Uusihakala, Finnfund; Ilona Mooney, Work Ahead; and Nilah Mitchell, 60 Decibels The article has originally been published in The catalytic effects of DFI investment – gender equality, climate action and the harmonisation of impact standards by ODI. Abstract Gender-lens investing has quickly become a priority for many development finance institutions (DFIs). The 2X […]
Read moreAugust 13, 2021
New statement on climate and energy will guide Finnfund’s climate actions
Finnfund has adopted a new statement on climate and energy. With this statement, Finnfund expresses its commitment to the objectives of the Paris Agreement and explains what this commitment means in practice for its portfolio management, investment process and measuring of the portfolio’s carbon footprint. Finnfund strives to take the lead among development financiers in […]
Read moreJune 30, 2021
New open-access FRESCOS Tool launched for accounting the carbon sequestration in forestry projects
Four European development finance institutions (DFI) – CDC Group (UK), Finnfund (Finland), FMO (Netherlands), and Swedfund (Sweden) – together with Simosol, an IT company, have today launched the FRESCOS Tool, a web-based, open-access tool to account for the carbon sequestration of afforestation and reforestation projects. The overall goal of the FRESCOS Tool is to better […]
Read moreJune 29, 2021
Thoughts left by 2020, part 1: Global thinking becomes more relevant after the pandemic
The year 2020 not only marked our lives forever, but it also made us think about our current living habits and how sustainable is our life on this planet. More than a year ago, back in February 2020, I was not aware that my last “in person” monitoring mission for 2020 was taking place at that precise moment. I was leaving […]
Read moreMay 6, 2021
Finnfund first development financier to report carbon net-negative investment portfolio
Finnish development financier and impact investor Finnfund today released data showing that its total investment portfolio has a net negative carbon balance. The figures for 2019 indicate that Finnfund’s investments removed 134,679 tCO2e more than they emitted. In 2019, Finnfund’s investment portfolio was EUR 617 million. “I am extremely proud that we have been able to […]
Read moreMay 4, 2021