• EUR 560mn in commitments from top European institutional investors, including Allianz and APG, marking over half of IPC’s target.
• Focus on impact: Direct lending to SMEs addressing key environmental and social challenges like climate change and healthcare.
• Sustainable finance leadership: Classified under Article 9 of SFDR, ensuring strong impact measurement and transparency.

Allianz Global Investors (AllianzGI) has secured EUR 560mn in total commitments at the first closing of its Impact Private Credit (IPC) strategy. Key investors include Allianz, APG Asset Management, the European Investment Fund (EIF), and La France Mutualiste, which marks the strategy’s successful start, reaching over half of its target size. The IPC strategy focuses on direct lending to European small and mid-market companies addressing major environmental and social issues.

The IPC strategy emphasizes businesses that provide measurable solutions to global challenges. These include climate change, resource efficiency, and social inclusion through sectors like sustainable energy, healthcare, and education. As Matt Christensen, Global Head of Sustainable and Impact Investing, highlighted, “The move from ESG to sustainability to impact is the trend of this decade. Impact investing is growing in waves across private markets, going from private equity in prior years to private credit as of today.”

The strategy is managed by a team based in London, Zurich, and Paris. Co-developed by AllianzGI’s Development and Impact Credit team led by Nadia Nikolova and the Impact Strategy team headed by Diane Mak, the IPC aims for market-rate returns while delivering strong impact outcomes. “Impact investing through private debt is gaining momentum due to regulatory changes and societal pressure to ‘do good’ with investments,” said Alexandra Tixier, Lead Portfolio Manager.

A key feature of the IPC strategy is AllianzGI’s proprietary impact framework, which ensures rigorous assessment of the positive social and environmental impact throughout the investment lifecycle. The fund is classified under Article 9 of the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR), underscoring its commitment to sustainability and transparency. Edouard Jozan, Head of Distribution Europe, added, “Client interest in impact investing continues to grow and evolve, expanding from the equity focus to the credit market today.“

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With its structured impact-linked performance fee mechanism, the IPC ensures that a portion of remuneration is tied to achieving specific impact targets. As Menno van den Elsaker and Marcin Lenart from APG Asset Management stated, “With AllianzGI, we have found a partner that has one of the most advanced and thorough frameworks for assessing impact in private credit investments.”

AllianzGI’s IPC strategy is rapidly positioning itself as a leader in impact investing, addressing environmental and social challenges with transparency and measurable outcomes. The strategy is paving the way for sustainable growth through targeted lending to Europe’s SMEs while delivering market-rate financial returns.