Catalysing private capital for climate impact

The Green Climate Fund's chief investment officer (CIO), Henry Gonzalez, speaks to Environmental Finance about how the Fund is mobilising private capital at scale, the role of partnerships in accelerating climate progress, and the importance of convening power at its GCF Private Investment for Climate (GPIC) Conference.

Environmental Finance: What is the role of the Green Climate Fund in mobilising private capital at scale?

Henry Gonzalez: The Green Climate Fund (GCF) has a private sector strategy that aims to play a catalytic role in crowding in private capital. We are the financing mechanism of the 2015 Paris Agreement (see box) and of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Our overall role is to support the countries we serve by increasing the flow of climate finance to address both mitigation and adaptation.

We have a high-risk appetite and can provide capital across a range of financial instruments – from grants and guarantees to debt, equity, and bonds. Our goal is to anchor transformational and impactful funding proposals that test new business models, foster innovation, and, most importantly, crowd in both private and public capital.

In the ten years we've been operating, 37% of our total allocations have gone to private sector projects – around $6.4 billion. With that $6.4 billion, we've catalysed an additional $25 billion, demonstrating the multiplier effect of our approach.

EF: What are the most effective ways for the private sector to accelerate progress on climate change?

HG: The GCF's private sector strategy aims to help businesses and investors identify and implement solutions for mitigation and adaptation in developing countries. Our focus is truly global – supporting countries across Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, Asia-Pacific, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Central Asia.

We work through a diverse range of partners – from commercial banks and impact investors to asset owners and asset managers. By using our catalytic capital, we enable them to innovate and bring forward projects that drive both climate mitigation and adaptation.

We also work very closely with governments to ensure that the projects we fund align with national priorities and are truly transformational and impactful. We're committed to helping countries realise their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and adaptation strategies through different types of investments. The private sector is a critical part of this effort — and we aim to be a catalyst for tangible results on the ground.

EF: What is the value of the GPIC conference, particularly in 2025?

HG: GPIC is our flagship conference for GCF's private sector partners – and this year marks our seventh edition. It's a vital opportunity to bring our partners together to showcase lessons learned, highlight innovation and transformation, and demonstrate the real impact our transactions are having on the ground.

It's also a platform to engage with a broader range of actors – asset owners, pension funds, insurance companies – many of whom are exploring how to enter or scale their engagement in climate finance. GCF can help by using its convening power to bring these players together and show them how to become part of the solution.

This year's event is especially meaningful as it takes place on the margins of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) World Congress. We're able to take advantage of the diverse participants present – from the private sector and civil society to governments and other stakeholders – to cross-fertilise ideas and foster a shared understanding of how to deliver high-impact climate action.

This year's GPIC conference

Convened by the GCF, approximately 300 financiers, project developers and other market players met in Abu Dhabi's national conference centre in October to discuss how to mobilise private investment towards climate and nature.

Taking place alongside the IUCN World Congress, the seventh edition of the GPIC conference focused on successful blended finance initiatives, including loans to small businesses in rural communities to combat electricity blackouts, electric vehicle infrastructure financing or work to decarbonise fertiliser at scale across Latin America.

The programme featured case studies of successful GCF initiatives with partners such as FMO, Ecobank, the Green Guarantee Group, MacQuarie Asset Management, inter alia. Financial institutions, including Barclays, Standard Chartered and HSBC, all highlighted their ongoing engagement with blended finance structures – such as debt-for-climate swaps, asset-backed financing or repurchase agreement (repo) financing.

Blended finance was largely seen as a way to reduce project risk, particularly in emerging markets, but challenges remain: our goal is to anchor transformational and impactful funding proposals that test new business models, foster innovation, and, most importantly, crowd in both private and public capital.