Global investment organization EQT announced today the launch of EQT Future, a longer-hold fund aimed at investing in companies with market-shaping impact potential, where sustainable transformation requires a longer ownership horizon.

EQT aims to apply its active ownership model to accelerate the companies’ sustainable transformations, with a focus on the key objectives of “Planet, People, and Prosperity.” EQT Future has a target fund size of €4 billion.

Christian Sinding, CEO and Managing Partner of EQT, said:

“By combining EQT Future with our firm-wide approach to embed positive impact into every investment, we have the best possible foundation to grasp the most exciting opportunity, and responsibility, of our time – to support businesses that can accelerate transformational change for the benefit of the environment and society at large.”

The new fund will deploy an Impact Acceleration Plan for every portfolio company to achieve asset-specific and portfolio-level KPIs, including reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions using science-based targets, improved employee wellbeing, and increased gender diversity. Compensation incentives will be tied to the sustainable transformation, with progress on the goals tracked towards a 50% split within the top 20% of earners in each company, and up to 20% of the fund’s total carried interest being tied to achieving the KPIs.

Paul Polman, former CEO of Unilever, and Jacob Wallenberg, Chairperson of Investor AB, will co-chair the EQT Future Mission Board. Polman, said:

“There is an enormous opportunity to invest in businesses that give back more than they take and I am a firm believer that success will come to those who focus on solving the world’s problems. I share this mindset with EQT and I am therefore excited to join the EQT Future Mission Board to support a strategy clearly geared towards investing in companies that are, or have the potential to, change industries for the better. As Co-chair, I will focus on the purpose and impact thesis of EQT Future’s investments and leverage my network to connect the team with the right skills and people.”

Anders Misund, Partner and Head of EQT Future’s Advisory Team, said:

 “With EQT Future, we will leverage EQT’s proven responsible ownership philosophy and challenge ourselves and portfolio companies to further elevate our ambitions for driving tangible and measurable impact. The fund’s longer-term ownership horizon will unlock new opportunities that historically have fallen outside the investment mandate of EQT’s Private Equity funds.”