Madrid, September 05, 2022. Rodrigo Madrazo, director general of COFIDES, has been appointed CEO of the EDFI Management Company. The Brussels-based company has nine major European development finance institutions as shareholders: the Dutch FMO, the French Proparco, the German Kfw-DEG, the Belgian BIO, the Danish IFU, the Swedish Swedfund, the Finnish Finnfund, the Austrian OeEB and COFIDES itself. The shareholding is completed by the association that brings them together: EDFI.
In a context of changes and challenges in the European financial architecture, Rodrigo Madrazo will take over the management of EDFI MC on 1 November with the goal of revamping the Company and fostering development financing through a wide range of financial instruments. "I will rely on an interdisciplinary and multicultural team to position the company as a privileged partner of the European Commission and a benchmark for impact investment, particularly climate finance," says Rodrigo Madrazo.
EDFI MC provides financing to private investment projects with an impact component and the capacity to generate sustainable development. The Company focuses on business models, technologies and geographies where other investors fail to operate at the right scale.
In partnership with other development finance institutions, development banks and private investors, EDFI MC focuses primarily on sectors such as renewable energy, agri-food and financial inclusion through SME finance and microfinance. “Under a renewed leadership, we expect the Management Company to deepen its partnership with the European Commission in the implementation of External Action policies, particularly development finance policies through the European Fund for Sustainable Development Plus (EFSD+)” holds Soren Andreasen Chairman of EDFI MC.
Rodrigo Madrazo is a Spanish senior economist with more than 20 years of professional experience. He entered Spain´s civil service as a State Economist in 2001. He also holds a PhD in Economic Sciences and a Master in Public Management. He is author of numerous publications in the areas of economics and finance. Among other positions in the Administration, he was Director General of Economic Policy and member of the Boards of Directors of ICO, Aena and ICEX. Since 2018 he has held the position of director general of COFIDES. In these last 4 years he has boosted the Company's activity, which has expanded significantly from €2.3 billion to €3.4 billion in assets under management and advisory. At the same time, the good financial results have enabled COFIDES' net assets to increase by 38% from 125 million euros to 173 million euros, with a low default rate of 2.38%.
In addition to the usual business lines of internationalisation of the Spanish economy and support for economic development, always under strict financial, environmental and social criteria, in 2021 the Government entrusted COFIDES with the management of the Fund for the Recapitalisation of Medium-Sized Companies affected by COVID-19 (FONREC). The investment period of this Fund, which was open between July 2021 and June 2022, has resulted in 89 investments worth €779 million. The 89 companies that have obtained FONREC funding generate 37,000 direct jobs, 11,000 of them occupied by women.
ABOUT COFIDES
COFIDES is a public-private company that manages state funds, as well as its own resources and those of third-party institutions with different objectives: internationalisation of the Spanish economy, promotion of economic development and reinforcement of the solvency of the companies affected by COVID-19. In addition to the State, its shareholders include Banco Santander, Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (BBVA), Banco Sabadell and CAF-Development Bank of Latin America.
ABOUT EDFI MANAGEMENT COMPANY
EDFI MC is a Brussels-based company owned by leading European development finance institutions. In partnership with the European Commission and development banks and financial institutions, it manages several development-oriented product lines, including co-investment vehicles, blended finance facilities and credit enhancing guarantees.
