The European Investment Bank (EIB) is extending a €60 million guarantee to asset manager Sienna IM to unlock more private financing for biodiversity restoration across Europe, as detailed in an EIB press release. Delivered through the European Investment Fund (EIF) under the InvestEU Sustainability Guarantee, the support covers up to 70% of credit risk for small and medium-sized firms financed by the Sienna Biodiversity Private Credit Fund. Biodiversity across the continent is under growing pressure from pollution, overfarming, climate change, and invasive species, yet remains chronically underfunded.
EIB Vice-President Ambroise Fayolle said protecting and restoring biodiversity is no longer a niche concern but essential to Europe’s long-term growth, food security, and climate adaptation. The Sienna fund targets €200 million in total size and already secured a €100 million anchor commitment from France’s Malakoff Humanis Group. Over 36 months, it will finance companies and projects that protect natural capital, reduce environmental footprints, and use built-in impact clauses to track progress and attract more private investors.
The guarantee specifically targets early-stage biodiversity projects and those with limited collateral — the hardest to fund through conventional channels. EIF Chief Executive Marjut Falkstedt called it the EIF’s first biodiversity-focused guaranteed fund and a milestone in its green toolkit, stressing that “the green transition is as much about survival as it is an economic imperative.” Sienna IM private debt Deputy CEO Fabrice Rossary said the backing improves risk management and investor mobilization, with several promising deals already in the pipeline.
The EIB Group’s financing for agriculture and the bioeconomy reached €7.7 billion last year, up 22% from 2024 — a sign of growing institutional momentum behind nature-based solutions in Europe.
