The United Nations estimates there is an annual funding gap of $4tn for developing nations to achieve the sustainable development goals, with half of this shortfall related exclusively to the energy transition. The pace at which developing countries can advance the green transition largely depends on the investments they receive. At this year’s PLSA conference, Lord Alok Sharma said: “We cannot solve the climate crisis without transformational investment into the global south”.
We are delighted to be joined by an expert panel of speakers from the Foreign Commonwealth & Development Office, Finance in Motion, ILX, Ninety One and Pensions for Purpose.
Who is this event for?
This event is open to all our members. If your organisation is yet to join Pensions for Purpose you may attend an event before becoming a member, so please register for a trial session.
Register hereSpeakers
Christoph Freytag, Managing Director, Finance in Motion
Christoph has spent over 20 years championing inclusive banking and development finance in emerging markets. He has led institution-building operations in Russia, Bulgaria and Serbia; served as Managing Director of IPC; and became the first Managing Director of ProCredit Bank Germany in 2012. He joined the team of Managing Directors at Finance in Motion in 2018. Christoph is a certified banker and graduated with a master’s in Economics from Frankfurt University.
Adam Taylor, Head of Economics and Finance, Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
Adam is Head of Economics and Financial Servicesat the British High Commission, in New Delhi. He joined the High Commission from HM Treasury in London, where he held a range of international economic and financial roles, most recently leading HM Treasury’s engagement with the IMF through the COVID-19 crisis.
He previously led HM Treasury's work on counter-terrorist financing and was a member of the UK’s delegation to the Financial Action Task Force. He is a member of the UK Government Economic Service and has previously worked in the UK Home Office.
Sophie Gioanni, Head of Investor Relations, ILX Management BV
Sophie is the Head of Investor Relations at ILX and is responsible for leading the fundraising efforts and maintaining and building relationships with investors. She has over 25 years of experience in investor relations and a strong track record in private credit, private equity and hedge funds.
Sophie holds an LLM from Duke University and the University of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, as well as a master’s in Business Administration from the University of Paris Dauphine. She is admitted to the New York and Paris bar.
Alan Siow, Co-head of Emerging Market Corporate Debt, Ninety One
Alan is Co-head of Emerging Markets Corporate Debt and Co-portfolio manager of the Emerging Markets Corporate Debt, Emerging Markets Investment Grade Corporate Debt and All China Bond strategies.
Prior to joining the firm, Alan worked at BlueBay Asset Management where he was a portfolio manager specialising in Emerging Markets. From 2008 to 2011 Alan worked at Alchemy Special Situations as an executive responsible for European distressed debt and special situations investing. Prior to Alchemy, Alan was a vice president in fixed income at Citigroup Salomon Smith Barney. Alan started his career at Deloitte in Australia.
Alan graduated with a Bachelor of Commerce, first class honours (Accounting and Finance) degree from the University of Western Australia and completed a Masters in Business Administration at INSEAD, France. He is also a qualified Chartered Accountant (Australia and New Zealand).
Ashish Kumar, Adviser, Pensions for Purpose
Ashish has a long background in private market climate investments and philanthropy – with experience across backing ventures, large-scale programmes, and funds (as an allocator and LP).
Ashish’s work has ranged across various climate tech and impact sectors, covering energy and renewables; agriculture and ag tech; carbon and environmental markets; circular economy; sustainable mobility and digital financial inclusion.
Ashish has a special interest in engaging allocators towards impact-aligned themes, including and beyond emerging markets, through innovative mechanisms such as blended finance – where he brings significant transactional level experience as well Ashish holds a few affiliations and engagements with impact investors, family office, financial institution intermediaries and global multi-lateral organisations.
Over the years Ashish has also held several advisory and governance positions at funds and ventures. Ashish holds an MBA from the University of Oxford, and a Bachelor of Engineering from IIT Roorkee ,India.
Breakout room moderators
Rhian Campbell, Associate, Cardano
Rhian is an Associate on the Cardano Sustainability team. She joined Cardano in 2022 after completing her ACA with BGM, where she trained as an auditor for three years.
In her role at Cardano, Rhian is responsible for preparing the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures for pension schemes and analysing individual companies to determine their investability based on Cardano's policies and framework.
Additionally, Rhian is a member of the Group's gender inclusion network (GIN) committee, which focuses on promoting gender diversity within the organisation. She holds a BA (Hons) in Geography from Durham University.
Bill Manahan, Director of Institutional Solutions, Downing
Bill joined Downing in July 2023 as a Director of Institutional Solutions. He has a wealth of experience in the institutional space - private markets, risk management - across fundraising and business development. He holds a degree in Commerce from University College Dublin and has a post graduate diploma in Law from the Department for international Trade (DIT).
Pavan Bhardwaj, Trustee Director, Head of Investment, Independent Governance Group, (IGG)
Pavan Bhardwaj is a senior trustee and the investment practice lead at IGG. He is appointed to a range of large defined benefit and defined contribution schemes including a master trust. Pavan has a background in financial services, having previously managed derivatives portfolios at BNP Paribas and ING. He has an LLB in Law and a MSc in Financial Economics from the University of Oxford.
Host
Richard Giles, Senior Director & Community Lead, Pensions for Purpose
Richard is a Senior Director at Pensions for Purpose and responsible for working with our Community Partners, setting our strategic themes and hosting events for all the members of our network.
Richard has over 30 years’ experience of working in the pension industry as an adviser, senior executive, board member and trustee. He has a portfolio of board roles in finance, education and culminating in looking after the planet.
Pensions for Purpose
Pensions for Purpose exists as a bridge between asset managers, pension funds and their professional advisers, to encourage the flow of capital towards impact investment. Our aim is to empower pension funds to seek positive impact opportunities and mitigate negative impact risks.
Our Community allows members to learn from leaders in the impact investment industry. We provide a trusted environment to interact, collaborate and share knowledge. Members engage in a programme of activity to shape their strategy in ESG, sustainable and impact investments.
For more information, please email the Membership Manager.
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