Impact Ventures reaches £20.8m first close

Impact Ventures UK (IVUK) has attracted commitments from the London Borough of Waltham Forest Pension Fund, Deutsche Bank (through its DB Impact Investment Fund), Stichting Anton Jurgens Fonds and The Golden Bottle Trust. The fund's cornerstone investor is Big Society Capital, which supplied a £10m investment.

The fund will target organisations that have a positive social impact for disadvantaged people and communities in the UK, as well as create a financial return. It will look to invest in enterprises that specifically impact education, housing, employment and that foster skills, as well as mental and physical health areas. IVUK will make debt or equity investments of between £500,000-5m.

The successful fundraise highlights the growing popularity of social impact investing. Indeed, one of the UK's most high-profile private equity practitioners, Sir Ronald Cohen, is now chairman of the G8 Social Impact Investment Taskforce and Big Society Capital.

Richard Brass is head of UK clients at Berenberg and founder of IVUK. Oliver Kairus is partner at LGT VP and is co-founder of the fund.

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• LGT Capital Partners