The Lab is pleased to share the news that the Sub-national Climate Finance Initiative (SCF), one of the eight climate finance instruments incubated during the Lab’s 2020 cycle, has launched with an initial commitment from the Green Climate Fund (GCF) of up to USD 150 million for a first-loss tranche of the SCF’s investment fund and an additional USD 18.5 million grant committed to SCF’s dedicated technical assistance facility.

SCF, which seeks to scale mid-sized climate resilient and low-carbon infrastructure projects at the sub-national level (e.g. municipalities, provinces) level in emerging economies, is believed to be the first private equity fund to feature a Technical Assistance Facility that provides local government capacity building and certifies all projects for SDG impact prior to investment.

SCF is a joint effort run by a partnership of consortium members — Pegasus Capital Advisors (Pegasus), the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), BNP Paribas, Gold Standard, and R20–Regions of Climate Action — providing leading expertise along the entire sustainable infrastructure project value chain. You can read their joint press release announcing the launch and GCF commitment here: Pioneering SCF Initiative launches with global consortium and commitment from GCF.