BlueOrchard has raised $250 million at the first close of its BlueOrchard Climate Action Mobilisation Fund (BOCAMF), a blended finance fund focused on climate mitigation and adaptation in emerging and frontier markets. The fund will primarily provide senior loans to banks, microfinance providers and other financial institutions that channel climate finance to SMEs, alongside direct corporate lending.
Key Overview
- BlueOrchard raised $250 million at the first close of BOCAMF.
- The fund focuses on climate mitigation and adaptation in emerging and frontier markets.
- It will primarily provide senior loans to banks, microfinance providers and other financial institutions.
- The strategy includes an allocation for direct corporate lending.
- BOCAMF received an investment-grade rating from Moody’s Ratings.
- The first close included senior financing from Aviva Investors and Daido Life Insurance Company.
- Schroders, British International Investment (BII) and FinDev Canada also committed to the fund.
BlueOrchard Raises $250 Million for Climate Finance
Global investment firm Schroders’ impact investment management arm BlueOrchard has raised $250 million at the first close of the BlueOrchard Climate Action Mobilisation Fund (BOCAMF).
The blended finance fund is focused on supporting climate mitigation and adaptation in emerging and frontier markets, as available capital remains a fraction of what is required to meet global climate finance needs.
BOCAMF is designed to help bridge this financing gap by directing long-term institutional capital into climate-related investments. The fund will primarily provide senior loans to banks, microfinance providers and other financial institutions that provide climate finance to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
The strategy will also include an allocation to direct corporate lending.
Fund Uses Blended Finance Structure
Blended finance brings together public or philanthropic capital and private funding through a common investment structure. This approach enables investors to participate in investments that may have high perceived risk profiles, including new climate mitigation-related technologies.
BlueOrchard said its BOCAMF strategy combines senior lending to financial institutions with direct corporate lending. The diversified approach is designed to target attractive risk-adjusted returns while supporting climate mitigation and adaptation across emerging and frontier markets.
The fund will provide senior loans to banks, microfinance providers and other financial institutions that channel climate finance to SMEs, while also lending directly to businesses across emerging markets.
Through this structure, BOCAMF aims to mobilise long-term private capital toward climate action while delivering attractive risk-adjusted returns.
BOCAMF Receives Investment-Grade Rating
BlueOrchard also announced that the strategy has received an investment-grade rating from Moody’s Ratings.
According to BlueOrchard, this makes BOCAMF the first blended finance fund in emerging markets to issue notes carrying an investment-grade rating from a leading international credit rating agency.
Michael Wehrle, CEO of BlueOrchard, said:
“By combining BlueOrchard’s 25-year track record in emerging markets private credit with an innovative blended finance structure, including direct corporate lending, we have delivered an investment solution that broadens institutional access to climate finance while meeting the investment and regulatory requirements of insurers and other long-term investors.”
Institutional Investors Participate in First Close
The first close included senior financing through investment-grade notes provided by private-sector institutional investors Aviva Investors and Daido Life Insurance Company.
Commitments were also made by Schroders, British International Investment, and FinDev Canada.
Lori Kerr, CEO of FinDev Canada, said the fund creates an investment-grade pathway into emerging-market climate finance while supporting climate solutions and demonstrating a model that could unlock larger capital flows in the future.
She said:
“That is the promise of blended finance – to turn investor interest into action and expand what the market can achieve.”
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BII Plays Catalytic Role
British International Investment played a catalytic role in creating the fund through its mobilisation initiative, launched in 2025 to encourage the private investment community to help develop products capable of increasing investment in climate-related projects in emerging markets.
BII worked with BlueOrchard and prospective investors from the outset to develop a structure designed to meet institutional investor requirements while delivering climate impact.
A key objective was to meet the regulatory requirements of life insurers, including UK insurers seeking Matching Adjustment 1 eligible assets under Solvency UK.
By incorporating these investment requirements into the structure from the beginning, the fund provides a route for insurers to invest more long-term capital in emerging-market climate finance while meeting their regulatory obligations.
Expanding Institutional Access to Emerging Markets
The fund’s first close demonstrates investor interest in climate investment opportunities across developing economies and the potential for financial structures to mobilise capital toward climate action.
Leslie Maasdorp, CEO of British International Investment, said:
“This first close is an important proof point for the continued evolution of blended finance as a powerful mobilisation tool.”
He added that demonstrating how institutional investor requirements can be met alongside climate impact can create a pathway for greater commercial investment into emerging markets.
According to Maasdorp, successful vehicles can strengthen the market, build investor confidence and make future structures easier to replicate and scale.
Outlook
The $250 million first close gives BOCAMF a platform to direct long-term institutional capital toward climate mitigation and adaptation in emerging and frontier markets. Its lending strategy combines senior loans to financial institutions that provide climate finance to SMEs with direct corporate lending.
The investment-grade rating and participation from private-sector institutional investors, development finance institutions and other investors also form part of the fund’s structure for broadening institutional access to emerging-market climate finance.
BlueOrchard said the fund demonstrates how blended finance can combine investor requirements with climate impact while creating a potential pathway for larger flows of private capital into emerging markets.
FAQs
1. How much has BlueOrchard raised for the Climate Action Mobilisation Fund?
BlueOrchard has raised $250 million at the first close of the BlueOrchard Climate Action Mobilisation Fund (BOCAMF).
2. What does the BlueOrchard Climate Action Mobilisation Fund invest in?
BOCAMF focuses on climate mitigation and adaptation in emerging and frontier markets, primarily providing senior loans to banks, microfinance providers and other financial institutions that channel climate finance to SMEs. It also includes direct corporate lending.
3. What rating has BOCAMF received?
The fund’s strategy has received an investment-grade rating from Moody’s Ratings. BlueOrchard said this makes it the first blended finance fund in emerging markets to issue notes carrying an investment-grade rating from a leading international credit rating agency.
4. Which investors participated in the first close?
The first close included senior financing from Aviva Investors and Daido Life Insurance Company, alongside commitments from Schroders, British International Investment (BII) and FinDev Canada.
Sources: ESG Today, British International Investment, Dealroom
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