CAF joins the Global Private Capital Association’s DFI Council

CAF is represented in this council by Jorge Velarde, Director of Funds and Impact Investments: “For CAF it’s a real privilege to join this DFI Council, which we see as an ongoing collaboration platform and a great opportunity for sharing best practices among the impact investment industry and to partner with our peers for mobilizing private sector resources to Latin American and the Caribbean”. The Council provides an effective venue for CAF to connect with other DFIs, identifying practical ways in which peer collaboration and coordination can increase the efficiency and impact of DFI investments in global markets.

GPCA’s CEO Cate Ambrose commented, “I’m delighted to welcome CAF to this important group of development financial institutions from across the globe. Given CAF’s extensive experience and expertise in Latin America, Jorge Velarde will bring a valuable perspective to further the Council’s mission to support financial sector development and investment in our markets.”

The most recent DFI Council meeting was held as part of the 2022 Global Private Capital Conference, which took place between April 4th and April 6th, in New York. This conference is hosted annually by GPCA, in partnership with IFC - International Finance Corporation. Topics from this year´s conference included climate change, impact investing, energy transition, digital infrastructure, venture capital and innovative startups across global private capital markets.

This new flagship investors meeting represented an evolution of the GPEC conference hosted by IFC and EMPEA for more than 20 years in Washington, DC, and convened private capital investors in a highly interactive experience to learn the latest industry trends and connect with its prominent voices. More than 350 fund managers, limited partners, industry practitioners and special guests participated of this event, in which CAF had two representatives from its’ Funds and Impact Investment Direction.

During the conference, Latin America took main stage within the global private capital industry as it has experienced a 250% growth over the last 8 years, with more than USD 29 billion invested in the region in 2021, according to data provided by GPCA and LAVCA, making it a mandatory destination for global investors. However, the growth in the ecosystem has been mostly concentrated in Brazil and Mexico, comprising more than the 67% of the capital invested in the region. This represents a tremendous opportunity for additional growth in the rest of the LatAm countries, and a significant challenge for all the investors in the region. DFI´s have historically played a big role as investors in the region and continue to play a leading role in developing the private capital markets in countries where the ecosystem is less developed.

In this context, CAF is striving to promote the sustainable and sustained development of its’ member countries by strengthening the private capital ecosystem, with special emphasis on the mobilization of intelligent capital towards high-impact projects. This is being achieved by assuming a leadership role in the structuring and promotion of investments (direct or through funds) with a clear vision of impact, active coordination with the main players in the sector and promotion of best market practices that to promote the economic reactivation of Latin America and the Caribbean and achieve the goal of becoming the Green Bank of the region.