The European Innovation and Social Impact Fund was launched under the guarantee of the EU's Employment and Social Innovation Program (EaSI) and is managed by the European Investment Fund (EIF).

Connecting investors with social enterprises seeks to bridge the financial gap that these enterprises often face. Funding from the Fund will benefit social entrepreneurs who are focused on solving urgent problems in education, nutrition, health or social services.

European Commissioner for Employment and Social Rights Nicolas Schmit explained: The added value of social enterprises is clear, but their access to finance is often insufficient. The fund will connect social enterprises that have just started doing business with investors so that entrepreneurs can realize their ideas. We must continue to invest in the social economy, create jobs, improve people’s lives and strengthen the resilience of our societies. This is more important than ever before in the context of the crisis.

In the first round of financing, the Fund raised 4.5 million euros and will issue the first loans to social enterprises by the end of 2020. A press release is available here.