DEEP DIVE: Looking to improve people's lives? Here are 12 leading VCs focussed on social impact

In the impact space, a lot of the focus and capital is being directed towards climate tech, energy, and industrial transformation right now.

But of course, Impact has its social side as well – helping disadvantaged people into work with dignity, making classrooms and online spaces more inclusive, improving access to high-quality care, and so on.

Around Europe, many projects aim to create positive social change, and plenty of founders are seeking financial support for these initiatives. However, finding the right funding sources can be overwhelming.

To help, Impact Loop presents a selection of 12 venture capital firms, investment companies and asset managers with proven track records of directing some – or even all – of their investors' money toward social causes.

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1. Impact Bridge: Global social impact fund with a debt-focussed approach

Madrid-based Impact Bridge are a major player, particularly in southern Europe and developing countries. The firm sets itself apart with a debt-first strategy which aims to give smaller enterprises more flexibility, as well as a rigorous approach to evaluating impact. Impact Bridge, with over €350m ($380m) under management, recently announced it is working with the Spanish government to deploy tens of millions for environmental and social causes.

Big news: Impact Bridge announced in February a new fund targeting €150m ($162m) for sustainable agri-food SMEs across Spain.

2. Blue Earth Capital: Pursuing financial inclusion, backed by a non-profit

Swiss-based Blue Earth Capital, owned by the not-for-profit Blue Earth Foundation, has thrown a lot of weight behind its social impact ambitions. The firm has to date invested over €538m ($585m) into social impact projects, with a particular focus on financial inclusion and agriculture in underserved regions. In late 2024, they closed a €108m ($113m) private credit fund for developed and emerging markets.

Big news: Blue Earth Capital was recently named ‘Impact firm of the year’ at the 2024 New Private Markets Awards in London (the second year in a row the firm took home an award).

3. Alter Equity: France’s Impact pioneers

Founded in 2007 by France’s “queen of responsible finance” Fanny Picard, Alter is well-known for putting the impact model to action in France. Across its various funds, Alter has positions in mental wellbeing startup Teale and inclusive employment platform Gojob. In 2024, the firm’s third fund had its first closing with €85m ($92m), and is still raising, after netting €110m ($119m) for its second fund in 2021.

Big news: Alter recently brought over Camille Richard, formerly Head of Sustainability at French impact success story Back Market, to be its Chief Impact Officer.

4. Ananda Impact Ventures: Impact generalists with a strong social focus

Founded in 2009, Munich-based Ananda now has €200m ($218m) under management, deployed across healthcare, education and ageing populations, as well as its various climate-focused investments. With its latest €108m ($117m) fund, backed by the European Investment Fund and German state-owned KfW Capital, Ananda has invested in blue-collar employment platform mobileJob as well as prosthetics startup Open Bionics.

Big news: Ananda recently took part in a €4.8m ($5.2m) seed funding round for Berlin-based reproductive care startup Ovom.

5. Creas: Fostering Spain’s vibrant social enterprise ecosystem

As Impact Loop has been covering, Spain has a long history of social-entrepreneurship. Madrid- and Zaragoza-based Creas – which is short for ‘venture capital in the social sphere’ in Spanish – has been supporting social projects and businesses since 2008. Their portfolio reflects their social impact pedigree, with investments in startups working to improve schooling, access to care, immigrant integration and audiovisual accessibility.

Big news: In 2024 Creas announced the first closing of its Creas Impacto II fund at €40m ($43m), eventually aiming for €70m ($75m) by July 2025.

6. Big Issue Invest: social investment reaching millions of Britons

Readers in the UK may be wondering ‘is it the same Big Issue?’ And yes, it is. For those who don’t know, the Big Issue is a social enterprise magazine which has been around for decades, sold by and for the benefit of homeless and vulnerable people. With around €81m ($87m) under management, Big Issue Invest is involved with at least 145 businesses tackling inequalities in health, housing and income, among others.

Big news: At the end of 2024, Big Issue Invest’s impact report claims to have reached 1.8 million Brits with its investments.

7. Mirova: Serious Impact heavyweights

Paris-based Mirova is well-known for its overall impact investment strategies, and with tens of billions of euros under management, is far and away the biggest investor on this list. Alongside its extensive environmental portfolio (for which it won ‘Asset manager of the year’ at the Environmental Finance Impact Awards 2024), Mirova has around €364m ($394m) specifically for social impact investing and has financed at least 113 social impact companies.

Big news: in 2024 Mirova announced a €200m social impact fund, ‘Mirova Impact Life Essentials’ with a focus on ageing populations, inclusive education and social inequalities, among others.

8. Global Social Impact Investments: a focus on employment and equitable income

This Madrid-based asset manager, GSI for short, does pretty much exactly what its name suggests. With two funds, one focused on Africa and the other on Spain, the firm pursues investments in projects and companies that cater to vulnerable peoples’ basic needs, with a particular focus on livelihoods. Through its Africa fund, the firm claims to have increased incomes for beneficiary communities by around 40 percent, created thousands of jobs all while delivering investors a 4 percent return.

Big news: GSI was awarded the ‘Best Impact Deal’ at the Private Capital Awards run by Spanish VC association Spaincap, Deloitte, and IESE Business School.

9. Giant Ventures: Multi-stage ‘purpose-driven’ investors

Giant, as the name implies, has a major footprint in the impact space. With hundreds of millions under management, and offices across Europe and the US, the firm, founded in 2019, has counted Richard Branson as an LP and has former UK foreign secretary David Miliband on its advisory board. Giant invests across three themes, climate, health and inclusive capitalism. Among the latter portfolio can be found startups focusing on reducing the cost of living in Africa, increasing social mobility and fostering financial inclusion.

Big news: Last year Giant announced a $250m ($230m) fund for environmental and social causes, with around a quarter of that earmarked for investments in the Nordics.

10. Tilia Impact Ventures: An eye for social innovation

Prague-based Tilia, founded in 2018, seems to be on the lookout for projects that serve those corners of social benefit overlooked by others. Among their investments are startups to improve ‘speak-up’ culture and transparency in workplaces, hearing-impaired inclusion for online video, adjustable eyeglasses for the world’s poorest, as well as more efficient public procurement. The firm launched its second fund in late 2023, worth €32m ($34m), and claims to have helped hundreds of thousands of disadvantaged people through its investments.

Big news: In January Tilia invested in LetsData, a Ukrainian bootstrap startup that detects digital disinformation and helps clients combat it.

11. Ring Capital: a leader in Tech4Good

Paris-based impact VC Ring Capital, founded in 2017, has around €420m ($458m) under management, which it deploys to companies trying to solve what it calls ‘critical’ social and environmental problems. With a series of funds, targeting companies at various growth stages, the firm’s overall portfolio includes companies pursuing expanded coding education, more efficient fundraising for charities and disability inclusion.

Big news: In late 2024, Ring closed its second fund with €175m ($189m).

12. AENU: Millons backed by a rigorous impact assessment methodology

Berlin-based AENU, founded in 2022, has made a name for itself, not least for its in-depth methodology for evaluating the impact of its investments. The firm closed its first fund late last year at €170m ($185m), well over the expected €140m. Alongside extensive climate investments, AENU also pursues founders working on financial and educational inclusion, re- and up-skilling, and DEI efforts.

Big news: AENU, along with Future Energy Ventures, recently launched the Germany chapter of impact investor community ImpactVC.