France-listed insurer AXA Group has acquired a 20% stake in Luxembourg-based, emerging markets venture capital firm Blue Like an Orange.
AXA had been one of the first investors to commit to Blue’s $200m Latin America Fund I in June last year and has re-upped as a cornerstone investor to its second fund as part of the ownership stake in the management company.
Blue Like an Orange’s second fund, Sustainable Capital Latin America Fund II, will invest in South American companies offering social impact in support of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.
Bertrand Badré, managing partner and founder of Blue like an Orange, said: “With my partners Rashad Kaldany and Emmanuelle Yannakis, and the entire Blue like an Orange team, we are delighted to continue the pioneering work we started in 2017 with AXA’s support. By building on our expertise in structured debt, our knowledge of emerging and developing markets and our ability to work with public development institutions, we intend to contribute to putting sustainable investment at the heart of investment strategies in the future.”
Pascal Christory, chief investment officer of the AXA Group, added: “We are pleased to invest alongside the experienced and successful team of Blue like an Orange. Their approach to put finance at the service of more inclusive and sustainable growth fits perfectly with AXA’s ambition to have a positive social and environmental impact through its investment policies.”
