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How is private equity supporting Europe’s drive towards greater sustainability?

"We have the ability to be world leading in climate tech and in artificial intelligence. By investing in private companies, we could create great competitiveness in those businesses. We could even create world-leading businesses.”

One of my greatest passions as a woman and a woman of colour in the industry is a call to action to both investors and general partners to think about greater representation for women and minorities in their ecosystems.

There are lots of challenges that remain, such as diversity and carbon emissions. To help tackle these challenges, VC and private equity firms are incorporating sustainable investment principles, to prepare for a future that is more sustainable and more inclusive.

How does private equity and venture capital support European start-ups, helping to build global champions?

Private equity is delivering returns to millions of European pension holders every year: “Based on the Performance Benchmark Report compiled by Invest Europe, Europe has demonstrated solid performance across different segments. Venture capital, growth and buyout have been outperforming listed equities over the past 10 to 15 years.”

Why venture capital investment is vital to the growth and success of the European pharmaceuticals industry, which supports tens of millions of people every year through the development of new treatments.

How does private equity support companies in challenging times? “The benefit of the private equity model is to really invest for growth.

“Private equity plays a very important role to make business more sustainable. It is the perfect ownership model to implement the right measures in terms of ESG. You as an owner determine the strategy of the business.”

“In Finland, private equity-backed companies are growing on average 6-7 times faster and creating >10 times more jobs than their peer group. It’s so much more than transactions – it’s value creation, growing people and growing companies.”

“I see a great challenge in that many investors are still hesitating when it comes to integrating sustainability and ESG into their investments. I would like to see impact investing as a significant part of every long-term financial portfolio.”

Why long-term investors should look to private equity for returns?“Private equity has outperformed listed markets over the long term. Because private equity is so geared towards long-term performance, it’s perfectly suited to drive pension funds’ performance.”

“We are managing the savings of millions and millions of people and we take it very seriously.”

“We invest in businesses and help them grow faster, get stronger, innovate more, go international and create value and jobs.”

Invest Europe’s ‘Leader Interview’ series: Bringing to screen the leaders of the private equity, venture capital and infrastructure industry, and sharing their insights on the industry, how it operates, and the value it creates across Europe.

“The industry is providing an immense contribution to innovation. If you look at all sectors, most of the innovations today come from startups.”