Impact Policy Tracker Policy

Chile Ecológico Fund



Launched in November 2022, the Chile Ecológico Fund is the first mutual fund in Chile dedicated primarily to investing in Chilean Green Bonds certified under Climate Bonds Initiative (CBI) and ICMA’s Green Bond Principles (GBP). The fund allocates at least 60% of its assets to Chilean issuers that incorporate ecological principles aligned with the Paris Climate Agreement, supporting projects in clean energy, efficiency, water treatment, electromobility, forestry restoration, eco-efficient public infrastructure, and sustainable urban development.

Structured as a regulated mutual fund with daily liquidity and low minimum investment, the instrument is intentionally designed to democratise access to environmental impact investing among retail savers across Chile, leveraging BancoEstado’s nationwide branch and digital channels. By 2024-2025, the fund surpassed 26,000–38,000 participants, becoming the most widely held green fixed-income impact product in the country.



Highlights

  • Proven Environmental Impact and Financial Results: The Chile Ecológico Fund delivers verified environmental results while maintaining competitive returns, financing 21 certified green projects across renewable energy (38%), energy efficiency (29%), water treatment (14%), emissions reduction (10%) and forestry restoration (10%). Its investments generate 80 MWh/year of renewable energy, save 2.1 MWh/year, improve building efficiency by 4,303.3 kWh/m²/year, restore 4,355.8 hectares of land and avoid 47.3 tons of CO₂e annually. This impact is matched by strong financial performance, with +6.92% nominal return in 2024 and +12.69% accumulated since its launch (2022–2024).

  • Democratizing Access to Environmental Funds for Retail Investors: Chile Ecológico Fund is a pioneering retail-oriented impact product in Latin America. As Chile’s first mutual fund focused on certified green bonds, it enables residents of all income levels to invest in environmental impact with minimum entry amounts as low as US$0-108, attracting tens of thousands of participants and channeling household savings toward the achievement of measurable environmental objectives.

Government’s Role:
Market Regulator


Country:
Chile

Policy Type:
Facilitating Retail Investors’ Participation in the Impact Economy

Year: 2022

Responsible Institution:
Chile’s BancoEstado (State-owned Commercial Bank)

Additional information:
Impact Report - Chile Ecológico Fund

Facilitating Retail Investors’ Participation in the Impact Economy

Retail investors represent a significant yet often overlooked source of capital for the impact economy. While most discussions on mobilising private capital focus on institutional investors, retail investors collectively hold +USD 100 trillion1 in savings, particularly in countries with high household saving rates. Unlocking even a fraction of this potential could channel billions towards projects that foster economic growth and deliver positive social and environmental outcomes.

Despite this potential, retail participation in sustainable and impact investing remains limited due to several structural barriers, which include - but are not limited to- : (i) low public awareness and visibility of available opportunities, (ii) the limited number of publicly listed impact companies - often due to their smaller size - making them inaccessible through mainstream investment channels, (iii) high minimum investment thresholds, and (iv) liquidity constraints, as many impact investments, particularly in unlisted companies or private markets, involve long lock-in periods that may not suit individual investors’ needs.

Governments can play a key role in addressing these barriers by lowering investment thresholds through proportionate regulatory frameworks (as in the EU’s ELTIF Regulation), developing more flexible impact investment vehicles to address liquidity concerns, establishing reliable labelling schemes for sustainable and impact products, opening regulated avenues for retail investors to invest in unlisted impact companies (as seen in the UK), and tackling sustainable and impact investment literacy gaps through awareness campaigns.



1 Financial Times Group (2022). “The Individual Imperative: Retail Impact Investing Uncovered”. Available at: https://sri360.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/FT_Focus-IMPACT_V10-5.pdf