Moving towards a digital & sustainable economy

2020 has been the year of remote working, online collaboration and digital connectivity. Digitalisation has allowed us to be resilient against the worst potential effects of social distancing, and has allowed us to keep working, but also to keep connected with one another.

We have remained dedicated to fostering innovation and disruption in the digitalisation space, with clear priorities in the fintech, life sciences, healthcare and agribusiness sectors, while also ensuring support for traditional businesses in their digital transformation. In fact, in 2020, 32% of our venture capital investments went to emerging segments like disruptive technologies and blue economy.

At the same time, 2020 has also shown us that we must be future-focussed, and there is no clear future without placing core importance on climate action and environmental sustainability. We are already active in the sustainability space. In fact, the EIF has been one of Europe’s most active LPs in Cleantech venture capital, investing EUR 622m in sustainability-focused funds since 2006 and enabling EUR 2.7bn to be raised in the market.

But there is still much to be done. And so, with the adoption of the EIB Group’s Climate Bank Roadmap, we are taking ever-more concrete steps towards helping to ensure Europe’s sustainable future, as evidenced by our partnership with UNDP and commitment to the PRI.