Rubio Impact Ventures gets up to €20 million participation from the European Investment Fund (EIF)
The EIF financing is made possible by the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI), the central pillar of the Investment Plan for Europe

Dutch impact investing fund manager Social Impact Ventures has launched its second fund and adopted a new name; Rubio Impact Ventures. The first closing of the new fund at €55 million includes continued strong support from the European Investment Fund with a €20 million participation, as well as a €10m SEED Capital loan from Dutch RVO. The EIF participation in the Fund was made possible by the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI), the main pillar of the Investment Plan for Europe of the European Commission, under the impact investing initiative.

The fund manager now has close to €100 million impact capital under management to support impact-driven entrepreneurs. Rubio aims to further accelerate entrepreneurs with game changing solutions as it strongly believes that the most valuable companies of our time will be those solving society’s biggest problems.

With a packed deal pipeline, the target for Rubio’s second fund is to double in fund size while continuing to invest in the most ambitious early growth stage entrepreneurs who are changing industries for the better. Rubio sees profit and purpose as a virtuous circle and the fund holds itself accountable for ambitious financial and impact targets. Rubio will continue to fundraise for a final close and aims for €140 million under management in 2021.

The growth of the fund in the midst of a pandemic signals the trust of investors in the fund strategy and execution, as the largest investors in Fund I such as the European Investment Fund and Dutch insurer ASR, are increasing their stake and new investors are coming on board.

Alain Godard, Chief Executive of the EIF, stated: “This EIF investment underlines what is really important in business: people and impact. The European Investment Fund has supported Rubio Impact Ventures since 2016, as we believe in its strong approach to invest in innovative projects with a positive and fundamental impact on people and the environment. A European, environmentally-conscious, VC ecosystem that can contribute significantly to societal and economic change, should be a priority for all.”

Paolo Gentiloni, European Commissioner for Economy, said: “Bright new ideas with a social mission need the right funding to get off the ground. With support from the Investment Plan for Europe, Rubio Impact Ventures in the Netherlands now has up to €100 million to give social enterprises a much-needed boost. A welcome contribution to building a more sustainable and socially inclusive economic model.”

Helmer Schukken, Managing Partner Rubio “Impact investing is becoming the new normal and we are very excited that our current and new investors share our vision to invest in entrepreneurs that create impact and deliver financial returns. Together we can reshape industries in ways that move our planet forwards in a sustainable and inclusive way.”

Background information:

The European Investment Fund (EIF) is part of the European Investment Bank Group. Its central mission is to support Europe's micro, small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) by helping them to access finance. EIF designs and develops venture and growth capital, guarantees and microfinance instruments which specifically target this market segment. In this role, EIF fosters EU objectives in support of innovation, research and development, entrepreneurship, growth, and employment.

The European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI) is the main pillar of the Investment Plan for Europe. It provides first-loss guarantees enabling the EIB to invest in more and often riskier projects. The projects and agreements approved for financing under the EFSI are expected to mobilise €514 billion in investment, supporting over 1.4 million start-ups and small and medium-sized enterprises across the European Union

About Rubio Impact Ventures Rubio Impact Ventures was founded by Helmer Schukken, Warner Philips, Machtelt Groothuis and Willemijn Verloop. Rubio invests growth capital from €1-8 million in ‘iconic’ game changing ventures such as SkinVision, VanderSat, OLIO and Samasource.

Press contacts:

EIB Group:
Tim Smit, +352 691 286423, t.smit@eib.org

Rubio impact ventures:
Willemijn Verloop, +31 6 55 333 131, willemijn@socialimpactventures.nl

European Commission:
Flora Matthaes, +32 460 755148, flora.matthaes@ec.europa.eu