OVERVIEW
A groundbreaking platform empowering local businesses and fortifying sustainable value chains in the Amazon. Through a blended credit facility, including a first loss tranche, the initiative extends credit lines and fair loans to local micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), complemented by a technical assistance facility delivering on-the-ground support. This initiative fosters regenerative business models for better production practices, environmental equilibrium, and enhanced livelihoods.
THE PROBLEM
MSMEs in the Amazon play a vital role in the bioeconomy but face challenges accessing capital and technical support due to their remote location from financial institutions and perceived risk factors. Conversely, private finance encounters barriers such as environmental risks, infrastructure limitations, regulatory complexities, and market access issues in the Amazon. Moreover, many Amazon businesses lack financial literacy, limiting their effective utilization of private financing.
THE SOLUTION
The Amazon Food&Forest Financing Initiative serves as a hub for investors, asset managers, DFIs, philanthropies, and local organizations to test, assess, and execute blended finance strategies. Customized for the Amazon region and the socio-bioeconomy, it provides fair loans, technical support, banking and monitoring platforms, and blended finance solutions to local businesses and value chains, promoting scalability and risk reduction. By aligning private investment with ESG principles, the initiative ensures investor returns while advancing regenerative practices. Innovative tools like transparent guarantee systems and revenue anticipation solutions tackle financial challenges, positioning the initiative as a trailblazer in the Amazon socio-bioeconomy.
“To unlock the full potential of the Socio Bioeconomy, blended finance approaches are a vital catalyst to tackle a financial flow gap in support of thriving community-led economies. The Lab is the perfect environment and a very unique opportunity to improve the strategy and maximize the scale and the impact of the Amazon Food & Forest Financing Initiative.”
Gabriel Ribenboim, Co-founder & CEO of Impact Bank
“We hope to nurture a long-term relationship with the Lab, as climate finance instruments must incorporate lessons learned and evolve, both in terms of products and scale. We also expect to increase our network, build up expertise, and expose the instrument to different sources of capital holders and policymakers.”
Marina Aragão, Economics & Finance Lead – Brazilian Amazon at TNC Brazil.
TARGET IMPACT
This initiative tackles climate change and empowers communities by supporting regenerative practices. Proponent organizations ImpactBank and The Nature Conservancy aim to avoid 20 million tons of CO2 equivalent, conserve 5 million hectares of rainforest, and enhance carbon stocks in restored areas. The solution further strengthens local economies by facilitating forest-based sales agreements worth an estimated ~USD 60 million and injecting ~USD 20 million as working capital. It is expected to improve the well-being of over 50,000 individuals by increasing income and fostering resilience.
*Banner photo credit: Rafael Fernandes-Impact Bank
