Annual Review 2024

In today’s rapidly evolving world, with its complex challenges, impact entrepreneurs are proving that innovation and resilience can unlock opportunities even in the most demanding settings. At elea, we are committed to driving meaningful change by pairing patient financial capital with strategic, hands-on support for locally led, purpose-driven enterprises.

Alongside our circle of dedicated philanthropic investors, we help create access to jobs, markets, and value chains for people living on less than USD 3 per day. To date, our efforts have positively impacted the lives of more than 50 million individuals.

Building on this approach, we made six new investments in 2024, expanding our portfolio to over 30 impact venture. This growth has been supported, in large part, by our hubs in Africa and Latin America, which connect us to strong local networks and promising ventures. In addition to establishing new partnerships, we made four add-on investments, thus deepening our support for existing portfolio ventures.

At the same time, we continue to see growing interest in impact investing. This trend is driven by collaborations grounded in shared values and a commitment to scaling entrepreneurial solutions to address the pressing challenges of our times. In a conversation, Thomas Schmidheiny and Peter Wuffli reflect on the strategic partnership between Fourfold and elea, which was launched in 2024.

Our approach is also receiving growing international recognition. In collaboration with the Asia Community Foundation (ACF) in Singapore, we will continue to strengthen the sector and expand our portfolio of impact ventures across Asia. By partnering with international organizations such as ACF and the Livelihood Impact Fund in the US, we can unlock additional resources, spark innovation, and drive faster progress toward our shared purpose.

Transitioning from the strategic planning of the elea Vision 2030 to its implementation was a key focus in 2024. Important levers in this regard were the pooling of our expertise into practice groups that represent our four investment themes and the development of an active co-investor network to mobilize more risk capital. In addition, we further optimized our organization and processes and strengthened our global team by hiring, among others, a colleague in Mexico City and two in Johannesburg.

Looking ahead, we are optimistic about the path we are on and are confident that impact investing will become more mainstream over time. As we approach our 20th anniversary next year, we will continue to build on our experience as a pioneer in philanthropic impact investing. Together with our partners, the entire elea team looks forward to tackling what lies ahead.

We thank the elea Comité de Patronage and our circle of philanthropic investors for their continued trust in our work. We likewise thank the impact entrepreneurs of our portfolio ventures and their teams, who create new opportunities every day for people living in absolute poverty.

Dr. Peter A. Wuffli, Founder & Chairman

Andreas R. Kirchschläger, Founding Partner & CEO